


Covering the Phantom Thieves

by miketheburner (murb93)



Series: Trust Me, I Want Me Dead, Too, AU [2]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Awkward Romance, Comedy, F/F, Gen, Journalism, Mystery, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-29
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:21:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 33
Words: 225,509
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26708923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/murb93/pseuds/miketheburner
Summary: Shujin has a newspaper club. How hard would it have actually been to get students to talk about the troubles they face?An AU fic where the Newspaper Club Girl actually does her job and exposes the truth behind Shujin's greatest controversies and Tokyo's greatest criminals. She might even beat the Phantom Thieves to it.Updates on Mondays (Sundays if the chapter is already done)
Relationships: Niijima Makoto/Newspaper Club Member
Series: Trust Me, I Want Me Dead, Too, AU [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1944301
Comments: 285
Kudos: 114





	1. News is Thankless Work

_ Sunday, April 10th, Afternoon  _

Sunday production was a pain in the ass, and it would be much easier if she had a staff, Keiko knew. Still, she barely got an InDesign subscription approved through the Student Council's budgeting process. She couldn't imagine what Prisspants in Chief would do to her if she started recruiting more staff. It would make her barebones operation ever the more expensive, taking money from the school's crowning jewel volleyball team. Those were Principal Kobayakawa's words, not Keiko's. She didn't have much use for sports except for running. Shujin didn't have a track team anymore, and even if they did, they wouldn't let a girl on it. That would be blasphemous.

Keiko is only a little salty.

The one good thing about Sundays was the school was usually empty. She worked best in silence or with a podcast in the background. Unfortunately, the school wasn't empty today. Kobayakawa had scheduled a couple appointments with new students. He'd even reached out to Keiko about one of them, an honor student and gymnast that would "surely help put Shujin on the map." Keiko asked about the other student. He changed the subject immediately, so of course, she was more interested in the other student. She still told him to send the gymnast, Yoshizawa, in her direction after he was done. It wasn't often the school had a new honor student, even if Keiko didn't like being used as public relations.

Public relations jobs are for sellouts. 

There was a knock on the newspaper office door. Calling it the newspaper office was a bit of a joke. In reality, it was little more than a closet converted into a tiny office. It was the best Her Excellence in Incompetence could muster on short notice. 

"Come in," Keiko said, hoping her voice didn't bear the annoyed tone she usually spoke with.

An athletic reddish-brown-haired girl, short, but still taller than Keiko, with a bright red bow in her hair, wearing the black blazer and black skirt that made up their school uniform, stood before her.

"Hello, Senpai." The girl bowed. "Principal Kobayakawa asked me to stop by."

"You must be Yoshizawa-san," Keiko bowed as well. "I'm Keiko Miyahara. Just call me Keiko. I like to be on a first-name basis with everyone in the school." That was one rule of journalism that Keiko followed. 'You never know who could be a source. Always be friendly until you don't have to be. Even if it's fake.'

"Okay, Keiko-senpai. You may call me Kasumi." She gave a bright, friendly smile. At the very least, this would be an easy interview. 

"So, Kobayakawa sent you to be me because he thought a story on your transfer would be good for the school paper. Do you have time?"

Somehow, Kasumi brightened up even further. "I've never been interviewed before! My sister would be so proud."

"Well, I can start with that if you'd like."

"Oh, I'm not sure that's a story you'd like to write. It's not a happy one." Her voice wasn't pained, but Keiko couldn't help but feel she was acting a little bit. 

"You can tell me whatever you want, Kasumi. I'm a snoop, but I'm not an asshole." 

Kasumi laughed. "My father is a journalist. That's a statement I've heard him give many times."

'Ah, so she's  _ that  _ Yoshizawa.' "What made you transfer to Shujin?"

"My father thought it would be nice for me to have a fresh start after my sister passed. Her name was Sumire, and we'd had plans to conquer the gymnastics world together. I'm continuing my career in her honor. It's not easy."

"I don't mean to pry, and this definitely won't be in the story." 

Kasumi nodded.

"Was your sister the one from that bus accident a couple months ago? I remember your father disappearing from TV for a while."

"That was her."

"I won't ask any more about that." Keiko wasn't comfortable airing that kind of dirty laundry in a story. "So tell me about yourself. What do you do besides gymnastics?"

Kasumi took a second to think. "Would you believe me if I said there wasn't much besides gymnastics?"

Keiko laughed. "For all the work I put in for this stupid newspaper, yes, I'd believe you."

"I like to cook, too, but Sumire was always the better cook. It's the only thing she was better at." 

Keiko redirected to try and get less 'Sumire talk' out of the interview. "When's the next competition, and what can the school expect to see?"

"I don't have competition until the middle of June, but the big one is in October. If I do well there, I get to compete internationally." She took another second to think. "I think the school can expect me to try my hardest. In the meantime, I'll spend all my time training and studying because my status as an honor student is every bit as important to me as my gymnastics career."

"Thank you," Keiko said and ended the interview. "I appreciate your time."

"Any time. In a way, this makes me feel like I've made it. Nobody's ever offered to interview me before, even if it is just a school paper." 

Keiko chose to ignore the "just a school paper" comment. Kasumi seemed like a sweetheart.

As she was exiting the room, she bumped into a tall second-year in a black blazer and the school's signature terrible red and black plaid pants.

"Excuse me!" She eeped, then ran off in another direction. The second-year was accompanied by a handsome older man in a pink shirt and a fedora. That generally would have ruined the 'handsome' part for Keiko, but he managed to pull it off. He had the pointiest beard she'd ever seen. 

'This must be the other transfer…' Keiko ran out of the room and grabbed the kid. "Hey!" 

"Huh?" He gave her a confused look.

"I'm Keiko Miyahara. I'm with the school paper. I was wondering if you'd want to do a quick interview." He looked back at the older man, who cleared his throat with a grunt.

"Kid, as long as you're not causing trouble, I don't care what you do."

"I suppose I could do that. I'm Ren Amamiya. It's nice to meet you."

'Hopefully, his backstory isn't as tragic as the last one…' Keiko thought. Given he was here with an ornery guardian who looked at him with extreme disdain, this kid probably murdered somebody. "Alright, if you could come here and sit down, I'll make it quick."

He entered the office, and he closed the door, apparently not wanting his guardian to hear what he had to say. 

"I'll ask you things similar to what I asked her. What brings you to Shujin?"

He quirked an eyebrow and gave a smirk; 'attractive,' Keiko thought but then made an effort to suppress that thought. "It's the only school that would take me." His voice was fake deep like he was trying too hard. It probably would have worked better without the glasses. They were hilariously fake.

"Sure, and I'm Bob Woodward."

"I'm serious." She expected a glare, but his facial features were full of concern. "I got expelled from my last school. I don't know why they accepted me."

"What could you have possibly done to get expelled? Not to accuse you of not being manly, or something." Keiko knew men were weird about that sort of thing. 

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me."

"Maybe I'll tell you someday." He sighed. "I'm sure everyone will have a warped version of the incident soon. The teachers are all already treating me like a criminal."

"That…" Keiko decided not to press further. "I'm sorry. That sounds like a pain in the ass."

"It is. But I guess I'm a pain in the ass, so it evens out." 

Keiko chuckled. "That's good newsroom humor. Alright, then, Mr. Hardened Criminal, what do you think students should know about you?"

Ren laughed. "Beyond my criminal record? I really like to read, and I was in the theater club at my last school. I'm looking forward to living in the city because my hometown isn't anything special. I'm already overwhelmed by everything there is to do here." 

"You from the boonies?"

"Something like that. I was top of my class at Yasogami and I expect that to continue here. Still, I'm excited for the competition that comes with a bigger school." Keiko liked his confidence, even if it might have come off as a little fake.

"Yasogami? Where all those murders took place?"

"The very same. I swear, I didn't do it." He laughed at his own joke, and Keiko joined him. He was a bit of a dork, but it was charming.

"Do you play any sports?"

"I played everything except volleyball at my old school, but that's because they needed bodies."

It was then that Sojiro knocked on the door, signaling that they needed to leave.

Keiko opened it. 

"Kid, there was a train accident. We need to get going before traffic backs up."

Ren sighed and stood up, offering to shake Keiko's hand. "It was nice meeting you, Miyahara-chan."

"Keiko is fine." She took his hand.

"Ren, for me, then."

"Kid, I know you're trying to flirt, but we really need to go." Keiko's face got red. She wasn't interested in him, or anyone, like that. The truth wouldn't wait for love.

Keiko sat down to write. The train accident she could take from AP, which was somehow cheaper than an InDesign subscription. She paid for that, herself.

** Shujin gains two mid-semester transfers **

_ Aoyama- Two new students, second-year Ren Amamiya and first-year Kasumi Yoshizawa have transferred into Shujin Academy to continue their education.  _

_ Yoshizawa transfers in as an honors student and gymnast with aspirations to compete on the world stage. She is also the daughter of prominent TV host Shinichi Yoshizawa. She transfers after her sister, Sumire, passed away in a tragic accident some months ago.  _

_ "My father thought it would be nice for me to have a fresh start after my sister passed," Yoshizawa said. "We had plans to conquer the gymnastics world together. I'm continuing my career in her honor, but it's not easy."  _

_ Yoshizawa said she also likes to cook but gymnastics and academics take up too much of her time for her to have many hobbies outside of that.  _

_ Her next competition will take place in June but she said the most significant competition is in October; from there, how she finishes will decide if she gets to compete internationally.  _

_ Amamiya transfers to Shujin from Yasogami High in Inaba, the infamous home of the Foggy Day murders, which he swears he had nothing to do with.  _

_ He played several sports at Yasogami but claims he was just a warm body. He doesn't plan to continue his athletic career at Shujin.  _

_ "I really like to read and I was in the theater club," Amamiya said. "I'm looking forward to living in the city because (Inaba) isn't anything special. I'm already overwhelmed by everything there is to do here."  _

===

_ Monday, April 11, Early Morning  _

"Miyahara, do you have a second?" 'Oh, fuck, what's Kamoshithead want?'

"Yes, sir. What can I do for you?"

"I'd like to know when you spoke to Amamiya-kun." His voice featured his trademark arrogance and a little bit of anger. Keiko ignored him whenever she had the chance.

"While I was in production yesterday. I chased him down." Keiko tried to avoid being intimidated by this much, much larger man. His chin weighed more than she did. 

"Did you know he was a criminal when you wrote this  _ glowing  _ testimonial?"

"He told me he was. I didn't believe him. It happens. I'm not issuing a retraction." Short and sweet was the best way to handle angry readers.

"Even if I order it?" Kamoshida wasn't going to let her just walk away like he usually did.

"What exactly  _ do  _ you know about journalism, Kamoshida-sensei?"

"I know that disobeying my orders can cost you all of your funding." He spoke firmly.

"Oh no, all 80 dollars per year I get from the school.  _ How terrifying,"  _ she mocked. "I'm not one of these spineless kids you can push around."

"We'll see what you have to say after I talk to Kobayakawa about your behavior."

Keiko took a deep breath and let out a tired sigh. "Whatever you say, boss." Kamoshida walked away. 

She'd talk to Amamiya later about his record. The rumor mill was already starting, and she didn't believe a word of it. There was no way this dork without a fashion sense was a murderer, drug dealer, and elephant tusk trafficker. 'Hell, if he was a drug dealer, I'd hit him up. I'm fucking stressed.'

Classes were starting. Keiko could deal with the rest of the fallout later.

===

‘Yakisoba pan, Yakisoba pan, Yakisoba pan…’

"Keiko Miyahara, please report to the faculty office." The words brought Keiko horror as they rang over the intercom, not because she was scared, but because she hadn't eaten breakfast.

Kamoshida didn't scare her. She marched her hungry butt to the faculty office prepared to tear that asshole a new one, except it was Miss Kawakami waiting for her instead. 'That's stupid.' Keiko really wanted to yell at somebody, but she liked Kawakami. Other than her constant state of exhaustion, she seemed to be one of the few teachers that actually wanted what was best for the students rather than the school's reputation. 

"What can I help you with, Kawakami-sensei?" 

"I've been tasked with talking to you about insubordinate behavior." Keiko wouldn't meet Kawakami's eyes. "Did you really mock Kamoshida-sensei?"

"He apparently took my story on the new kids as providing a 'glowing testimonial' of a delinquent. I don't think one letter of the story was false, and his record is supposed to be private." Keiko sighed. "No point in ruining the kid's life over something that the school wasn't supposed to know about anyway."

"You didn't answer my question."

Keiko sighed. "Fine, yes, I mocked Kamoshida-sensei for threatening my newspaper's funding. I told him I wasn't spineless, and I wouldn't be pushed around."

"He's pushing Kobayakawa to have you expelled."

Keiko's resolve broke. "He- what? Over that?" Not much could have made her sweat like this.

"It's being discussed at the next board meeting. I'm sor-"

"Don't. It's got nothing to do with you."

"I tried to step in and argue in your favor. I can do the same at the board meeting." Keiko couldn't get over just how  _ exhausted  _ her teacher sounded. "But, you need to be more respectful starting today."

Keiko bowed. "Thank you, Sensei."

"Sorry for ruining your lunch."

"I don't feel like eating much right now, anyway." She ignored her stomach's rumbling. On her way out the door, she ran into the man of the hour. 

"Hi, Keiko-chan," Amamiya provided a friendly greeting before greeting Kawakami. 

She grunted a greeting and trudged towards the courtyard to try and comprehend her coming doom.

She didn't even get her yakisoba pan.

Today could go fuck itself.

===

Since they printed on Mondays, Keiko often took the day off. That allowed her a full six days to develop more content for their next issue, which was almost always more than enough time. While everyone else complained about Mondays, Monday was her favorite day of the week, typically.

This particular Monday, though, and she couldn't stress enough, could go fuck itself. She'd been at the school gate and marching off towards the train when Yuuki Mishima stopped her. He'd grabbed her shoulder, and she nearly clocked him, which would have been funny for bystanders. She was a whole head shorter than him, although if she had to guess, Keiko would bet he had a weak chin, and she knew how to throw a punch. Kind of. She learned the trick for making those punching machines in arcades read "999 power!" every time. 'That means I'm strong, right?' She knew she wasn't. 

Mishima flinched, and she caught herself. "What do you want, Yuuki-kun?"

"Kamoshida wants to see you in his office."

"That's nice, but I'm already off school grounds."

"He won't be happy," Mishima said it like he was talking to himself more than Keiko. He'd had some very obvious bruises on his face last week, and a couple of weeks ago, his arm was in a sling. Keiko wanted to get a story on his injuries, but he froze up and wouldn't say anything.

"I'll go if you tell me why you're covered in bruises." 

"I… I fell, that's all. Down the stairs." He laughed awkwardly. "I'm just so clumsy."

"Ah, so clumsy that you play on a nationally ranked volleyball team?" She raised an eyebrow.

"I'll-" He stammered. "I'll just tell Kamoshida that you had already left."

"That seems like a good plan. You should do that." Keiko started to walk away and turned around. "Hey, you wouldn't happen to know much about the transfer, would you?"

"He's scary, Keiko-chan. Did you know he assaulted somebody?"

"Actually, I did. But I'm curious now. Why do you know the specifics?" Yuuki choked a bit. "I've heard all sorts of things today. He murdered somebody, he's selling drugs, he eats children…"

"I, uh, erm-" He couldn't get any words out.

"But you're the first person to provide a specific name to what he did. I asked him about it yesterday. He doesn't seem dangerous. Why do you think he's dang-" she was interrupted by a shout from further back, at the school gate.

"Mishima-kun, I'm glad you caught her." Kamoshida had followed them down the road. "Miyahara-chan, I'd like you to come to my office."

"I'm sure you would," Keiko said without thinking. 

"What was that?" Kamoshida said, taking a more stern tone.

"I mean, yes. I'll come with you." So much for a day off. She followed Kamoshida back to the school, thanking her lucky stars that she's ugly.

Kamoshida tried making conversation with her, but Keiko was quick to respond with one-word answers in an attempt to cut him off. She wanted to be at home, not hanging out in this man-child's office. They made it to his office, a little grey room with a few windows that had the shades closed and a giant whiteboard. He sat down in his desk chair, the chair turned away from his desk and towards Keiko, who opted to stay standing near the door, which she ensured stayed unlocked.

"I think we should address our little misunderstanding from earlier," he said. Keiko could tell he was trying very hard to not act like a creep, which in turn made him seem more like a creep.

"I don't think there was a lot to misunderstand, Sensei."

He was visibly frustrated, but the frustrated look passed quickly. "I need to know what your prerogative is in trying to make that  _ delinquent _ ," he spat the word in disgust, "look like a hero."

"I think you're projecting, Sensei." She tried to keep her tone respectful, but she'd had enough of this conversation already. "It was a simple introduction. We're a small school for being in the city. Everybody knows everyone. It's a big deal when we get new students."

"Did you do your due diligence in learning he was a criminal?"

"Excuse me, Sensei, but keeping criminals out of Shujin Academy is Principal Kobayakawa's job, not mine." She hoped she wasn't crossing the line.

Instead, Kamoshida put a hand under his chin like he was thinking. That hand had a lot of ground to cover. "You make a good point."

Keiko wasn't expecting any concessions out of this conversation.

"I'll tell you what," Kamoshida leaned forward in his chair, his elbows resting on his knees and his hands folded. "If you get a couple stories about the volleyball team in your next issue, I'll talk to Kobayakawa about foregoing your expulsion." He looked at her like he was expecting a reaction.

She didn't react because she already knew. "You're extorting a high school student for good PR in a newspaper that has, on average, 15 readers."

"Are you rejecting my offer?"

"No." Keiko paused. "I'm not. I'll do what I can. But you need to answer a question."

"I don't need to do anything, Miyahara-chan. I could have you thrown out of this school this very second if I wanted to. But I'll answer your question anyway because I'm such a nice guy."

"Why are you so hung up on this student's record?" 

"What do you mean? I'm not allowed to worry about my school?" He returned a puzzled look.

"I'm curious what you had to gain by leaking it." 

His jaw dropped. "How did you know that?"

"I didn't, but I do now. Thanks. I'll have those stories out next week."

Keiko left the room before the conversation could continue any further. Today was still Monday, no matter how late it got. She was still leaving the school hours earlier than she would any other day.

Today wasn't her day. Keiko made her way past the school gate when she was stopped yet again, this time by another stupid man she wanted nothing to do with. 

"Ren-kun, I'm sorry, but I'm in a hur-" 

"What do you know about Kamoshida abusing students?" He blurted the words like vomit. Keiko was actually pretty sure she'd prefer he had vomited on her. 

"That's a wild accusation to throw out on your first day," Keiko said, scratching her elbow. "But it would explain some things. Got any proof?"

Ren shook his head.

"No source? No story." She started to walk away, thinking about Mishima. He'd be a source.

"What about Takamaki?"

"What  _ about  _ Takamaki?" Keiko didn't know her all that well, but from what she knew, she was a bimbo with a strong connection to that giant volleyball playing sentient chin that somehow grew a body. 

"I don't think she likes him as much as the school thinks she does." He sounded sad, but not in a forlorn lover sort of way. Keiko didn't pick up on the 'woman on a pedestal' vibe. "I've only been here one day, and I've learned firsthand how vicious the rumor mill can be."

"You have." Keiko sighed. "I'm sorry for being rude earlier. I wasn't quick enough to condemn the delinquent transfer student, and now they're considering my expulsion."

"They're  _ what  _ ?" It was like his whole demeanor changed from thoughtful and poised to ready to act. "Keiko-chan, I'm so sorry."

"It's nothing you have control over. Besides, Kamoshida just wants a couple of volleyball fluff pieces in return." It was then Keiko spawned an idea. It must've shown on her face.

"You have the same look on your face that I get before I do something stupid."

"Whoops." She couldn't get that stupid evil grin off her face. She was scaring the hardened criminal transfer student, apparently.

"Are you going to do something stupid?" 

"It won't be stupid if it works."

They started to part ways before realizing they were both going in the same direction. It was even more awkward when they both followed the same path out of Shibuya Station.

“Wait, you live in Yongen-Jaya?”

"Yeah, in the cafe, why?"

"You'll be seeing me around more than you want to." Keiko grinned. "LeBlanc, right? I've never been there, but I pass it all the time."

"That's the place."

"Cool. Now I can keep tabs on your criminal behavior. That'll make for some great stories."

She didn't notice Ren start to sweat as she walked away, his day's endeavors giving her words more credence than she realized. 

===

_ Tuesday, April 12th, After School  _

_ "I've heard he carries a knife…"  _

_ "I saw him threaten Miyahara after school…"  _

_ "He and Sakamoto skipped school to do heroin in the alleyway…"  _

These rumors were just ridiculous, and they were prevalent everywhere. It took a lot out of Keiko to not just start smacking people upside the head. There was nothing she hated more than unsubstantiated rumors and criminal or no criminal, Ren didn't seem capable of violence. Rash stupidity? Absolutely. But malicious violence? Absolutely not. 

Keiko had laid low at school today, knowing she had a lot to work on after with zero time for that dumbass meathead's interruptions. It would be difficult to avoid him  _ and  _ write about the volleyball team, but Keiko would find a way. She walked down the hallway to find Shiho Suzui, who hadn't yet gotten changed for practice. She talked to Ann Takamaki, the girl Ren had told her wasn't as deep in with Kamoshida as the school thought.

"Suzui, do you have a minute?" Keiko interrupted their conversation a bit rudely, knowing Suzui probably wouldn't have more than a minute.

"Sure, Keiko. What do you need?" Shiho wasn't always the quiet and polite-type, but something had happened some months ago that made it seem like she was afraid of her own shadow. She rarely spoke out of turn. Her crass nature seemingly disappeared overnight.

"I've spoken with Kamoshida-sensei, and he wanted me to do a couple of stories on the volleyball team to drum up support. He didn't provide specifics, and I thought you'd make a good subject if you have time."

"Oh," she gave a polite smile, but she shook her head. "I'm not ver- um, I'm not very good. He's been talking about taking my starting spot away, lately."

"Shiho, he can't do that!" Ann argued with her friend. "You're the best player on the team!"

"He can and probably will do it." Shiho's polite smile disappeared. "I'm just not where I used to be."

Keiko thought about it. Sports weren't really her thing, but she'd read enough sports stories to know what would sell. "But what if you got back to where you used to be?"

Shiho brightened up a little. "What do you mean?"

"Everybody loves a good redemption story. What if I wrote something talking about what you're doing to improve? It'll be great and show that even Shujin's star athlete is human."

"I really like that idea," Ann said.

"It makes you look good, it gives Kamoshida the positive press, plus it gives me something different to work on. I've never worked on anything like this before." In the process of talking Suzui into doing the story, Keiko spoke herself into being excited about it.

Shiho's smile was less polite this time. Instead, it was closer to the toothy, mischievous grin that Keiko remembered from when they were younger. "I'll do it. Do you have time after practice?"

Keiko didn't want to give up what little free time she had, but she would anyway. "I do. We can meet at LeBlanc in Yongen-Jaya. Ever been there?"

"Nope."

"Me neither. I mostly just want to bother the transfer student." Keiko exchanged chat ID's with Takamaki and Shiho, then went on her merry way.

===

Keiko walked into LeBlanc, and instead of "hello," she was greeted with "the kid's not here" in a gruff voice from the handsome older man that accompanied Ren that day at the school.

"Hello to you, too, strange old man who is trying to hook me up with his criminal ward."

She thought she was fighting fire with fire, but he laughed instead. "Nah, you're too good for him."

"You don't give him enough credit," Keiko said. "He at least had the good sense to recommend this place to me. I can't believe I live a block away, and this is the first time I've ever come in here."

"All it took was a boy moving in here."

"I know where you live, old man." She tried to give the man an angry look.

"You don't even know my name," he said, then laughed. "Sojiro Sakura. It's nice to meet another neighbor."

"Keiko Miyahara. Likewise, my parents aren't much for being out and about in lively Yongen-Jaya."

"Nothing lively about this place. It's why I live here."

Keiko gave him a look. "Is that why you adopted a delinquent?"

Oh. That made Sojiro mad. "Watch it, kid."

Ann and Shiho walked in a few minutes later. Shiho had a new limp that she wasn't walking with before and a dejected look on her face.

Ann's concern was evident, and Keiko wouldn't be surprised if one, or both, of them, had been crying.

"Bad practice?" Keiko asked as they sat down across from her in her booth. She'd been sipping coffee, probably a mistake if she wanted to sleep tonight, but that was a bridge Keiko would burn when she got to it.

"There are more bad ones than good ones, lately," Ann said. 

"I'm just playing hurt," Shiho said with a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "I'm fine. I'll be good to go by practice tomorrow."

"You need to stop diving after loose balls in practice. You're too reckless," Ann admonished her friend. "We'll be carrying you out in a body bag if you don't start taking care of yourself."

"I don't show up to your work and tell you how to do your job, blondie." 

"You would if you had the time. You're a complete control freak."

"I'm offended by that!" Ann really seemed to bring the best out in Shiho. She still seemed down, Keiko thought, but she wasn't in dire straits like she appeared to be in when they first arrived.

"You guys are nuts." Keiko laughed, then realized that was kind of an insult. "In a good way, I mean. Uh, sorry. I'm not used to actual interesting people."

"The school paper really is just all club notes, isn't it?" Ann asked. "I haven't actually picked up a copy." She made a face. "Erm. Sorry."

"None taken. I don't have enough money or equipment to have a staff beyond me," Keiko laughed. "My fault for getting into a field where nobody ever has money, ever, and the people that do have it view us as a nuisance."

"We should try and get started." It looked like Shiho was chewing on the inside of her lower lip anxiously.

"Agreed. How's the season looking?" Keiko started with the most essential sports question she could think of.

"The team looks good. We'll be better once we can get everybody back and healthy," Shiho's eyes lit up when she talked about the team. "Ideally, we'd be getting days off here and there, but Coach knows best, right? If we want to get to nationals, it's in our best interest to do as he says."

"What's it like playing under a gold medalist?"

Shiho sighed. "There are definitely expectations beyond what I'm used to. I played in middle school and even played club before starting at Shujin. A lot of the teams in club were as legitimate of competition as we'll find, so I really thought that was the kind of push I'd expect in high school."

Ann's eyes showed some worry, but Shiho spoke with confidence.

"It's unlike anything I've ever seen before. Practices are so intense, but I think Kamoshida gets the most out of us. If you can't cut it, you're gone, and that's that. It's why I'm not too concerned about my starting spot. If I lose it, it's because I didn't earn it, just like those that came before me."

"You guys have lost some surprising upperclassmen this last year." Shiho's eyes shifted at the statement coming from Keiko. She didn't really expect that to get acknowledged.

"We did." Shiho took a few seconds to think. "I'm not saying we aren't a better team without them. They couldn't keep up, and that's fine, but it's a shame how few third-years stuck it out."

"You mentioned earlier that you've been playing hurt, and it's put your starting spot in jeopardy," Keiko said. "What's plan B if you do lose your spot?"

Shiho answered immediately. "There is no plan B. I won't lose my spot. If it happens, I'll accept it, but it's not going to happen, so I won't think about it."

"Huh. Now I know how Niijima-Senpai feels."

"What you mean?"

"Oh, that's how I always answer her questions." Keiko gave an awkward laugh to herself. "Anyway, I think that's enough for one story. Thank you for your time, Shiho. Ann."

Ann stayed seated, but Shiho said she had to get home soon. Her parents were expecting her home for dinner. On her way out the door, she bumped into the tall, frizzy-haired transfer.

"Oh, Suzui-san, sorry." Her books clattered to the ground, falling out of her bag. He bent over to help her pick them up. She couldn't really bend, Keiko noticed.

Meanwhile, Ann was ordering a cup of coffee, making the same mistake Keiko had. 

"Ah, you're back," Sakura spoke to Ren. Ren greeted him then started making his way upstairs, but Ann stopped him.

"You're just going to ignore us?" Ann's eyes narrowed at him. 

"Sorry, Takamaki-san. It's been… a very long day." He looked like he'd just left a Kamoshida volleyball practice. 

"Sorry to hear that." Ann sighed. "And call me Ann, please." She motioned at him to sit next to her. "Come on, sit. I've got to find out if the delinquent transfer is going to try and sell me drugs."

"I don't sell drugs." Ren laughed.

"Shit," Ann and Keiko spoke in unison.

"He better not be selling drugs," Sojiro walked over with a cup of coffee for each of them. Keiko reached into her wallet to pay, but he waved her off. "You're going to need coffee. You'll be spending all night parsing through the bullshit that other girl fed you."

Ann looked startled, but the look only lasted seconds. "Are you calling Shiho a liar?"

"A liar? Not out of malice, but yes. A liar." Sojiro went back to his cleaning.

"That's part of why I stuck around, actually," Ann said. "I'd hold off on writing that story."

"Why?" Ren asked before Keiko could.

"I don't think she believes a word of what she said." Ann stood up. "I should go." 

Ren stood up and let her out of the booth, before sitting back down in front of Keiko.

"Can I get a preview of your next story?" He asked as soon as Ann was gone.

"I thought I'd do a feature on Shiho," Keiko said, but now she wasn't so sure. Too much seemed off about her behavior. "I'm having second thoughts."

"You should be." Ren's tone darkened, and he looked down into his coffee like it held the meaning of life. It was good coffee, Keiko thought. It might have the meaning of life. "Kamoshida is dangerous."

"I'm getting that impression." It was more than just an impression. It was hitting her over the head. "I think he might be hitting the players."

"He is."

"How do you know?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

She slammed her fists down on the table. "Do you really think dark, mysterious, and brooding is the route you want to go right now?" She was louder than necessary, her shouts filling the cafe. It was just Sojiro in the room anyway. She spoke more quietly. "If they're getting abused, and you have proof, you are morally obligated to come forward."

"I'm getting proof."

"How?"

"You wouldn't believe me."

"Dead men tell no tales."

"What does that mean?"

"Either tell me right now, or Kamoshida won't be your only problem."

The cafe remained silent.

Keiko sighed. "Fine. I'll figure this shit out myself. Thanks for your fucking help." She stormed out, but not before angrily thanking Sojiro for the coffee. It was delicious.

"Try the curry next time!" He said as she walked out the door. "Kid, you've got a lot to learn when it comes to women."

===

_ Wednesday, April 13, Afternoon  _

'I can't believe I'm covering the fucking volleyball pep rally. They don't even have a game coming up.'

Keiko hated pep rallies because she couldn't possibly care less about sports, besides the fact that these rallies only existed to metaphorically fellate Kamoshida even further. It caused her physical pain to watch this now potential abuser get high fives from the rest of the staff as he sent spike after spike into a team of innocent students. There had been at least two injuries that Keiko had counted, and she would be including the injury count in the story.

She hated to be vain, but there was one more thing that pissed Keiko off about the pep rally. She was stuck sitting next to and making a stilted conversation with Makoto Niijima, the 'keeper of the keys' for all of Keiko's dreams.

'That might be a bit overdramatic.' 

"Niijima-Senpai, I was thinking we could do a state of the student council story sometime soon." Keiko had zero interest in doing this story, but hey, it was content, and it could fill out the page.

"That's a good idea, Keiko-chan. Just let me know when you have time to interview me." There was another few minutes of silence before Niijima, shockingly, tried to make conversation of her own. "How have things been going at the paper? I saw your story on the new students…"

"Yeah, that story got me in a lot of trouble." Keiko interrupted before Niijima could finish.

"Really?" Niijima had a surprised look on her face. "I thought they were nice introductions of the new students."

"Kamoshithead," she tried to point subtly at the man. He was in the process of going up for a spike that would wind up nailing Mishima in the face. "thinks I glorified the 'delinquent transfer student' too much."

Ren had made his way over towards Mishima. He and Sakamoto were helping the kid up and taking him to the nurse's office.

"He doesn't seem like much of a criminal, does he? I can hardly believe the rumors." For the first time in her life, Keiko was impressed with Makoto Niijima.

"You're sharper than I thought. Something happened; Mishima just won't tell me what." Keiko gave a frustrated noise that was somewhere between a grunt and a sigh. Kamoshida had left the rally to check on Mishima, but Keiko whispered anyway. "He claims to have something on Kamoshida; he just won't tell me what."

"That has to be killing you."

"Don't act like you know me, Miss Prissident." Makoto looked hurt at the nickname. "But yes. Yes, it is causing me to die a slow, painful internal death."

===

~~** Kamoshida injures three during pep rally ** ~~

** Shujin prepares for coming games with pep rally **

_ The Shujin Academy volleyball team, with hopes of achieving a trip to nationals and beyond, were cheered on by their fellow students during a pep rally Wednesday.  _

_ Head Coach and former gold medalist Suguru Kamoshida  _ _~~ injured three ~~ _ _ led the way for the faculty squad over teams of the men's and women's volleyball team.  _

_ Former track team runner Tomo Nakaoka said participation from the track team was sorely missed this year.  _

_ "We had Kamoshida's number this year, but  _ _~~ of course Sakamoto had to fuck that up for us ~~ _ _ we weren't given the chance," Nakaoka said. "I know the team isn't together anymore, but we should have been given the opportunity to compete."  _

_ Student Council President Makoto Niijima said the pep rally was a great opportunity for students who may be too busy to attend a game to see Shujin's star attraction in action.  _

_ Kamoshida, along with the rest of the volleyball team, was not available for comment _ _~~ because the news media is a distraction, according to Kamoshithead ~~ _ _.  _

===

_ Friday, April 15, Afternoon  _

"Oh my god." Keiko looked on in horror as Sojiro's words became true. Shiho was a fucking liar. Keiko had made her way to the courtyard: She had made a stop at the newspaper office, so she was first in line. She didn't have her phone out. Keiko wasn't taking photos. Even as a journalist, she couldn't believe people were doing that in such a situation.

Shiho jumped from the Shujin roof. Seconds later, although it felt like hours to Keiko, she hit the ground with a sound somewhere between a thud and a splat. The student body was silent, except for the hysteric sobs from Ann Takamaki. Keiko saw Ren and Sakamoto take off immediately. She knew exactly where they were going, so she plowed through the crowd and followed them. Nobody dared get in her way.

She approached Kamoshida's office but didn't enter the room. This time, she did pull out her cell phone and started recording video. 

"You bastard!" Sakamoto shouted. "The hell did you do to that girl?"

Kamoshida was sitting at his desk, pretending to go through a stack of papers. Keiko only knew that because she was pretty sure he didn't know how to read.

"What are you talking about?" Kamoshida played innocent. Sakamoto accused him of playing dumb. Kamoshida still hadn't left the paperwork. 

He finally turned around, still sitting, and shouted back. "That is enough!"

Mishima spoke, his voice quiet. He seemed beaten down, both literally and metaphorically. "What you did wasn't coaching."

"What did you say?" It wasn't a 'what?' as in, 'I didn't hear you.' It was the kind of 'what' that Keiko's father gave her whenever she gave him lip. If this was anything like that situation, Keiko thought this wasn't going to end well.

"You ordered me to call Suzui here," Mishima said. 

Kamoshida stood up and spoke slowly. "You're going on and on about things you have no proof of. Basically, you're simply making these claims because you can't be a regular on the team, right?"

Mishima told him that's not what it was about.

"Even if it is exactly as you imagine it to be, hypothetically speaking," Kamoshida paused. "What can you do?" He leaned down to speak to the boys at their level. "We just received a call from the hospital."

'No.' Keiko's heart sank.

"Suzui's in a coma, and her chances of recovery are slim. How would someone like that make a statement?" Keiko's heart sank even further. "There's no chance of her getting better, I hear. The poor girl." His face was one of mock sorrow. Keiko wanted to walk in and slap the look off his face if she were able to reach that high. 

The three boys protested, except Ren, who remained silent, his fists tightened. 

Kamoshida looked at Ryuji, who had tensed up and looked like he was about to burst. 

"Does this mean we need to have yet another case of 'self-defense'?"

'What? Does this mean…' Keiko hadn't imagined a world where Sakamoto was innocent. Maybe the track traitor hadn't done anything wrong at all.

Ryuji went to swing, but Ren grabbed his fist and shook his head.

"Not here. Not right now, Ryuji." Keiko's heart nearly stopped at the transfer's stone-cold voice. 

"Oh? You're stopping him? What a surprise!" He laughed at the trio. "There's no need to hold back. Why not attack me?" He mocked further. "Oh, right. You can't. Ha! But of course, you can't!" Kamoshida returned to his desk. "Everyone present right now… will be expelled. I'm reporting all of you at the next board meeting."

"You can't do that!" Mishima shouted.

"Who would seriously consider what scum like you say? You threatened me too, Mishima, so you're just as responsible."

Keiko was concerned by Ren's nonreaction, but maybe he just wasn't a fan of Mishima. She couldn't blame him.

"To think you didn't know why I kept someone as useless as you on the team." Keiko watched Mishima's shoulders slump. "You act like a victim, but you leaked Amamiya's record, didn't you? It's all over the internet, correct? How terrible."

"He told me to do it. I had no choice." Keiko couldn't believe it. Kamoshida forced Mishima to leak the record.

"Now, are we finished here? You're all expelled. You're done for. Your futures are mine. Now get out of my sight."

"I can't believe he's getting away with this!"

Keiko muttered to herself. She clicked the stop recording button on her phone and sprinted back towards the newspaper office. "He's not getting away with this, Ryuji-kun." She stopped by the PA office and made an announcement. "Makoto Niijima, please come to the newspaper office. I repeat, Makoto Niijima, please come to the newspaper office."

Minutes later, Niijima knocked on the door.

"What do you need?" Niijima looked concerned. Keiko had never called her out like this. 

She set her phone on the table. "Sit. Watch."

Niijima watched the events unfold. "Holy fuck."

"Indeed."

Watching the president's mind run through the possibilities was a fascinating experiment worth a story all it's own. Keiko knew people made fun of her for acting like a robot but jesus if that comparison wasn't apt in the nicest way possible. 

"Make backups, now." Keiko commonly wouldn't be spoken to this way. "Send me one. I'll send one to my sister."

"Can we trust her?"

"She's a prosecutor." Keiko realized her tone wasn't demanding. Instead, it was one of a leader and one of respect. "If anyone will know what to do with evidence, it's her."

Keiko did as she was told. She also sent another backup to Ann Takamaki. "Our bases are covered."

"We need to leave immediately. We can continue this conversation elsewhere."

"We can go to LeBlanc," Keiko said. She was hoping to run into Ren there. He deserved to know there was evidence in his favor. "I could use some coffee."

"I'll follow you."

The two made their way back to Yongen-Jaya and Sojiro's coffee shop with little to no trouble.

The "ornery octogenarian," as Keiko called Sojiro upon greeting him, took their orders begrudgingly.

"I'm not that old!" He snapped playfully. "But if you keep bringing pretty girls around, I'll let you stay." 

Keiko didn't laugh like she usually would have. Sojiro was harmless, but now wasn't the time for jokes like that. He had no way of knowing. 

"What do we do?"

"We publish the video online," Makoto said. "You write the story, and we have a video to accompany it. I can get you a spot on the school's website."

"You have that kind of power?"

"We do have a student council page, you know." Makoto sounded annoyed. "Nobody looks at that stupid thing. I learned web design for nothing."

===

_ Saturday, April 16, Early Morning  _

The rumor going around the school wasn't about Shiho Suzui's suicide. It instead involved strange behavior from Ren and Ryuji. They had been going around the school asking anyone they possibly could about Kamoshida's no-longer-alleged abuse. 

Sadly, the student body had no interest in participating in their investigation. Keiko had the same luck, to the extent that she'd left school early. Kamoshida had called her into his office, but she instead went to see Kawakami, who let her leave school "sick."

This, at least, gave her time to write unabated, which she never got. The last time she got to write a story without rushing was pre-school when she was able to turn in a small story alongside her picture of a blue butterfly. Her mom got it laminated and kept it in her nightstand drawer. Keiko had been "my little author" to her ever since that day.

** VIDEO: ** ** Kamoshida taunts, students, threatens with expulsion **

_ Volleyball Head Coach Suguru Kamoshida is under fire after a video of him threatening three students surfaced on Saturday in the wake of an unfortunate incident involving one of his players, Shiho Suzui.  _

_ Second-years Yuuki Mishima, Ryuji Sakamoto, and Ren Amamiya confronted Kamoshida in his office on suspicion that he had been abusing players, which Kamoshida initially denies in the video.  _

_ "Even if it is exactly as you imagine it to be, hypothetically speaking, what can you do?" Kamoshida asked the trio. He then lied, saying he received a phone call from the hospital claiming Suzui was in a coma with slim chances of recovery. It was made known by school staff on Wednesday that Suzui expected to make a full recovery. However, it is not known if she will return to Shujin Academy.  _

_ Kamoshida then threatened the students with expulsion for confronting him and alluded to an incident where Sakamoto allegedly attacked him, inadvertently indicating himself as the aggressor in that incident.  _

_ "Does this mean we need to have another case of 'self-defense'?" Kamoshida asked an enraged Sakamoto. Kamoshida had been mocking Suzui to get a rise out of the students. Kamoshida also confessed to leaking Amamiya's criminal record to the school, which has been significantly falsified to include crimes he did not commit.  _

_ The Shujin Academy Gazette wishes Suzui the best in her recovery and stands in solidarity with the three students facing expulsion. Such corruption is unacceptable in this house of learning.  _

Keiko clicked save on the file. She might make her byline a little more prominent on the page. "Should I include my mug next to the story? I think I should include my mug next to the story," she wondered aloud. "I can't wait to see that fucker's face."

===

_ Tuesday, April 19, Early Morning  _

Makoto had successfully convinced Keiko to put their print off until Tuesday. It was the first time anyone had ever helped her with production. Makoto was able to divert funds from the volleyball team for an emergency situation. This enabled Keiko the opportunity to print on an off day, as long as she gave the local newspaper that served Aoyama the second rights to the story. The second their publisher saw what they were running, he called about purchasing the story's rights for more money than Keiko had ever seen. She nearly accepted the offer until Makoto pointed out that publishing something like this independently would look incredible. It could get her into pretty much any college she wanted. 

That didn't mean their thunder wouldn't be stolen. The school bulletin board was covered in calling cards when the girls got to school.

_ Sir Suguru Kamoshida, the utter bastard of lust. We know how shitty you are and that you put your twisted desires on students that can't fight back. That's why we have decided to steal away those desires and make you confess your sins. This will be done tomorrow, so we hope you will be ready. From, the Phantom Thieves of Hearts  _

"Fuck." Keiko told Makoto. "Fuck me, man."

"What even is a Phantom Thief?" Makoto was just as furious as Keiko, but they didn't have much time to react. Kamoshida marched right up to them and stuck a finger in Keiko's face.

"I know this was you!" He was loud, much louder than she anticipated him being in public. "First you publish this fake story, and now you air grievances against me in front of the whole school? I thought we had a deal. You're finished, Miyahara. You'll never see the light of day again."

"Fuck." She swore she heard Ren laughing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> InDesign- Adobe InDesign is a program used by newspapers to design pages. It's very expensive. Long gone are the days of forming pages on literal blocks. I wish I was around to learn it that way.
> 
> Public Relations- Journalists often have a long standing rivalry with Public Relations people, because their job is basically the antithesis. They work for companies and corporations in an attempt to spread news that the company wants the public to see. It's an overly biased operation but it does it's job. They're a necessary evil. Also, all journalists end up working public relations some day. There's more money in it.
> 
> Sumire- Keeping private matters out of stories when the source keeps talking about them is almost impossible. It's best to run by them what they're okay having printed, but often times they're more comfortable with it then the journalist is. I've been in these shoes before. In fact, the best story I ever wrote was an interview with a widow who spent all of her time taking care of a local park that her and her late husband loved. He had just passed away and I was so worried I was being crass. Instead, she spoke at length about him and how excited he would be to be immortalized in such a way. I can't reread that story without crying. 
> 
> Bob Woodward- A famous journalist who, along with Carl Bernstein, broke the Watergate Scandal. They're two of the most famous journalists ever.
> 
> Newsroom Humor- Often sarcastic and self deprecating. Follow @OHNewsroom on Twitter for examples. My favorite: "Yesterday, the youths said journalists all have a specific set of interests (FOIA, coffee, weird music & talking about stories). I was like, "Nah, not me," but I'm currently drinking coffee while filing records requests for a story I'm writing and listening to weird music. So." -Caitlynn Peetz on Twitter. She is 100% correct. My example? While writing this, I also filed a records request with a local city while listening to the Wingnut Dishwashers Union and drinking locally grown and roasted coffee. Check like two paragraphs up for the example of me talking about a story I wrote when nobody asked.
> 
> AP- Associated Press. International, national and statewide stories that newspapers can pick up so they don't have to provide their own manpower to cover something they need in their paper, but isn't something they'd be able to cover well locally.
> 
> Flirting- Keiko is not attracted to anyone. I actually include a lot of awkward moments like that in here because all of my female journalist friends get hit on constantly. It's really deflating and unhelpful when they're just trying to get a job done. Just because they're asking questions doesn't mean they're interested. Their job is to ask questions.
> 
> Fake News- There are definitely times when I miss something, or a colleague misses something. If we miss something, we run a correction or a clarification, or a retraction. It happens. It's not the end of the world. However, shitheads, like Kamoshida, feel emboldened to call anything that makes them uncomfortable fake news. I will stop here, because I have no intention on getting political.
> 
> "You're extorting a high school student for good PR in a newspaper that has, on average, 15 readers." Not an original line. I once said this to my university's head football coach after he called me angry that we reported on one of his players getting arrested. 
> 
> Heroin- Pat the Bunny, Wingnut Dishwashers Union frontman, used to do a lot of heroin. I was listening to his music while writing this. I couldn't not mention it. 
> 
> Sojiro- every newsroom has a Sojiro. Our old Sojiro left, so I get to be the new one, except I'm not handsome or smooth. I'm an okay cook, I make a great cup of coffee, and I'm absurdly cynical and bitter. That's where the similarities end. 
> 
> Strikethroughs- Always, always, always make sure you actually physically delete these before turning a story in. Editors don't like finding sarcastic quips in stories. 
> 
> Recording- In my state, it's illegal to record without both parties consenting. In Japan? No such law exists. I checked. 
> 
> Makoto- I very much used Makoto as a stand in for one of my real life bosses. I'm not the type to get easily upset, but I've worked with people who are, and you don't make it far with these people if you are. It took me some growing up to learn that a stern tone speaking a demand is often coming from a place of respect. They know I'm capable, and that's why they're telling me, not asking me. I've learned to take it as a badge of honor.
> 
> Suicide- Journalists don't report suicides unless the family okays it. Very public suicides get mentions but they aren't the centerpiece of the story without some form of okay from the family. 
> 
> Publishers- In this case, Keiko would have been treated as a freelancer, since typically high school newspapers aren't going to have the strongest copyright argument in court.


	2. A Combination of Terrified and Excited

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING  
> References to rape, death, but no graphic depictions. No worse than what's in the game.
> 
> Some terminology just to make some sentences read less strangely:  
> Jump- to jump a story means to start it on one page and end it one another. In a newspaper, page designers will often try and fit as many stories on the front page as possible (back in the good old days, they'd fit between 15 and 20 stories on a front page). Typically, there will be three or four stories on a front page, depending on the size of the paper. Those stories will, at the end, have something that says "to read the rest of the story, turn to Page X." 
> 
> PDF- to PDF something as a verb means to turn it into a PDF file that can be sent to the printer. It's a pretty simple concept.
> 
> Obits- Obituaries. The section where you can read about all of the dead people. Writing obits was the best job I've ever had. It's a bit morbid, but I learned about so many great people from that experience. My best articles are always writing about dead people.

_ Tuesday, April 19, After School _

_ “Did you hear? Miyahara posted that calling card. She’s trying to take down Kamoshida!” _

_ “Do you really think the school newspaper is capable of that?” _

_ “Did you see the story they put out this morning? Kamoshida’s a bastard.” _

Keiko wasn’t used to being the focus of the school’s rumor mill and her first time was a mixed bag. Apparently, people thought she was running around calling herself a Phantom Thief, which she wasn’t. She didn’t even know what a Phantom Thief was. It  _ really _ bothered her that she didn’t know what that was. She was glad people were looking at the story, though. She’d gotten a lot more eyes on the student paper and she couldn’t discount the benefits that came from that.

She was sitting in the newspaper office with Makoto after class had gotten out. Keiko assumed the only reason she hadn’t been called into the office to get ripped a new one was because Makoto took  _ so _ much of the blame when Kobayakawa questioned her about that video ending up on the school’s website.

“Seriously, Makoto. I owe you everything.” Keiko told her after they were able to shut the door. “I would have been expelled today, had you not stepped up.”

Makoto gave her a friendly, resolved smile. “It’s the least I can do. This story will go a long way towards keeping the school safe.”

“But what about Kobayakawa?”

“I have capital to burn.” Keiko never realized Makoto had a justice-streak like this. “If Kobayakawa knew about the abuses and did nothing, he deserves to go down as well. I trust that he’s your next target.”

Keiko didn’t like the idea of targeting anyone. “That’s not how journalism works, Prez.”

Makoto nodded.

“I’ll investigate, but I can’t just ‘take someone down’ without evidence.” She sighed. “If all Kobayakawa did is let it happen, there won’t be much of a story unless students make a stink. I can ask him those questions but he can choose not to answer them.”

“So, in order to take him down, you need to force his hand.”

“Again, that’s not my job. I’m a bystander. Journalists don’t act.” Keiko always found these conversations frustrating. She’d had them with her parents a million times. For what it was worth, she supposed, Makoto was much more mature than Keiko’s mother. “We report. Others act and we write about it.”

“Or, others act and you ignore it.” Makoto’s tone was flat. “And that makes you just as guilty as Kobayakawa.”

“Yeah. That happens.” She thought about a couple different big names she’d followed and emulated her work after. Ichiko Ohya and Kayo Murakami, for example. There was a rumor they’d stumbled upon something huge. A week later, Ohya wouldn’t talk about it and Murakami was being charged with murder she’d had to plea insanity for and now she was gone. Nobody really knew what happened to Kayo. Keiko supposed that was an extreme example, though. Nobody could reasonably expect Ohya to report the story after her friend’s disappearance. “It’s ultimately my duty to decide what the public needs to know and what they don’t. Not in a conspiratorial sense, but in a ‘what’s most important’ sense.”

“That sounds…” Makoto chewed the inside of her lip. “Complicated.”

“Extremely complicated. It puts me in an even more precarious position because I am now directly opposed to Kamoshida in my readers’ eyes.” Keiko didn’t want to think how complex her life was about to get. “Regardless of whether or not the readers agree with me, it taints my reporting because it implies bias.”

Makoto let the words hang in the air for a bit before responding, mulling over her own thoughts. “Is this why you’re constantly hounding me for more funding?” She gave a look that implied her own guilt. “More reporters would at least make the bias issues less complicated.”

“Yes. I’m in desperate need of other reporters but I don’t know if anyone in the school is even interested in working with me,” Keiko said. “Especially now that I’m a marked woman.”

The Student Council President again mulled over her words.

“What if I helped out?” Makoto spoke excitedly. 

‘Did I really successfully sell journalism to somebody by basically shitting all over it?’ Keiko mused. “You definitely don’t have time.”

“I’ll make time.” Makoto grinned. “The teachers might have to do their own paperwork for once. Plus, we’ve got a scandal to cover and nobody’s going to do it for us.”

“Do you like, have a cheat sheet of things to say or are you just trying to get me to fall in love with you?” Makoto’s face turned bright red. “Oh, god. Sorry. You’re still Prez. That was a joke. I’d be happy to have you.”

Makoto laughed. “I suppose I’m a bit innocent, sometimes. I do have a question, though.”

“Go ahead.” Keiko didn’t have any expectations as to what the question could have been.

“Did you hate me before all this?” A good question, Keiko thought.

“With my whole heart. If I had a gun with two bullets in a room with you, Kamoshida and Hitler, I’d have shot you twice.” Keiko spoke honestly. If they were going to be coworkers, or even friends, it would be good to get this out in the air.

Makoto frowned. “That’s a bit extreme.”

“Don’t ask questions you don’t want answers to, Makoto.”

===

“Oh, you’re back-” Sojiro paused. “Hey, you’re not the kid.”

“I am  _ a  _ kid, though.” Keiko chuckled. “Old-timer.”

Sojiro grumbled. “Am I going to be dealing with you every day now?” 

“The more you complain, the more I’m coming around,” Keiko took a seat at the bar in front of Sojiro. “Pretty soon I’ll be living here with Ren.”

“I don’t want to hear about your crush.”

“Not a crush,” Keiko responded quickly, too quickly. Sojiro laughed and she blushed. “I swear, I have no interest in him in that way.”

“I couldn’t possibly care any less.” Sojiro went to work on her cup of coffee. “Long day at school?”

“The longest day.” Keiko stared into the cup Sojiro placed in front of her. It smelled incredible. “Someone left a threatening note for the P.E. coach. He’s been creeping around. Actually…” Keiko rummaged through her bag and pulled out the Tuesday newspaper. “Here. Read all about it.”

“You write this?” Sojiro asked as he thumbed through the paper. 

“All of it,” Keiko said in an exasperated tone. “We’re a one-woman operation right now.”

“That’s impressive. What about that girl you were here with?”

“She’s starting this week.” And thank god she was. “She’s the Student Council President. I just recently recruited her into my force for good.”

“‘Force for good?’ All you reporters have a save the world complex.” Sojiro turned back to the front of the newspaper and started reading the expose on Kamoshida. 

“I will neither confirm nor deny that statement.” Keiko took a drink of her coffee.

“Shit, kid,” Sojiro said, reading the first few lines. “I knew he was up to trouble.”

“He did the right thing, old man. Don’t you dare get mad at him.”

“I don’t need you telling me what to do,” Sojiro snapped. “Ah. Sorry. It’s just, damn it. The kid reminds me so much of myself at that age. He’s supposed to be this delinquent and I just don’t see it. He might be trouble, but he’s no criminal.”

“Agreed.”

“I can’t believe he’s only been at that school for a month and he’s already had a hand in exposing something like this.” Sojiro flipped to the second part of the story, which had gotten jumped to another page. He finished the story. “Are you okay?”

“Huh? I’m great. Why?”

“I noticed you’re wearing glasses today.” He took his own off and wiped them on his shirt. “I remember being young. I used to only wear them when my eyes were too dry for contacts from lack of sleep.” She could see the concern in Sojiro’s eyes.

“Ah.” Keiko felt caught. “I didn’t sleep well last night.”

“Too excited?” She could have told him that yes, she was too excited. Isn’t ‘excited,’ in a way, a synonym of ‘terrified’?

“A combination of terrified and excited, yes.” She chose honesty because she assumed Sojiro would see through her bullshit.

He scoffed. “And now you’re drinking coffee instead of sleeping.”

“Yes.” Keiko looked away, feigning innocence.

“I’m so glad you aren’t my kid.” 

“Depends, where were you in January of 1999?”

“Kid, don’t even joke about that.”

“Sounds like  _ somebody _ is hiding something.” She laughed. “My dad wouldn’t like me joking about that.”

The bell to LeBlanc rang and Ren stumbled in looking absolutely exhausted. 

“Ah, you’re back.” Sojiro said.

Ren muttered a greeting and ambled up the stairs.

“Do you ever say anything different?” Keiko chuckled to herself.

“Sometimes I say ‘welcome back,’ why?” Sojiro returned a sincere look.

That chuckle turned into a full-blown laugh. “You’re a real life NPC.”

“That’s not the first time I’ve been called that.” Sojiro motioned upstairs. “The kid looked exhausted.”

“He did. You gonna ask him about getting involved with Kamoshida?”

“Maybe tomorrow.” Sojiro gave a sigh and a thoughtful look. “I think he’s too tired for an interrogation tonight. You, too. I’m closing up for the night. Go to bed early tonight. I don’t want to hear about you being sick.”

“Aw, does the old man care about me?” Keiko tried to give him puppy dog eyes but she knew she didn’t have them. Her eyes were too small for her face, she always thought.

“If you get sick, you can’t come in and spend money here every day.”

“It’s okay, gramps. I know I’m charming.”

“I’m charging you double tomorrow.”

===

_ Evening _

The house was empty when Keiko returned. It was lonely, occasionally, but she ultimately preferred it that way and she was sure her parents felt similarly. Her relationship with her parents wasn’t adversarial but both parties were cold to each other. Keiko was too quick to fly off the handle when either of her parents even dare suggested that they didn’t care about what was going on in the world, which would lead to them yelling at her about respect, to which she would reply that she doesn’t have respect for people who don’t care to understand their surroundings.

This often led to her going to bed early, which was code for fucking around on her computer for hours. It took her two years of part time work to buy the machine she wanted.  _ That fucking flower shop _ . She got chills when she thought about Hanasaki.

Keiko’s house was an old, narrow two story home situated between two businesses that had been there first. Whoever built the house surely thought, ‘wow, this 15-foot-wide space would be perfect for a house,’ then immediately regretted their decision because nobody ever stayed in it for more than a couple years. The Miyaharas were constantly hunting for a new residence but struggled to find anything in their price range that wasn’t an apartment. Neighborhoods, of course, were important to Keiko’s parents. She wouldn’t have minded living in a worse neighborhood, though. That’s where the action is. 

She has those thoughts all the time before she reminds herself that she’s barely 5 feet tall and might weigh 110 lbs soaking wet with bricks in her pockets. She was still astounded that she went toe-to-toe with Kamoshida without shitting her pants; she took pride in how gutsy she could be but that was terrifying, looking back. 

“That fucker has a full two feet and 150 pounds on me. If he wanted me dead, my funeral would have been last week,” she said out loud to nobody in particular. Her room was her refuge. She could talk to herself and nobody could stop her. 

Keiko’s room was small, but functional. The walls were grey and the wood floors were worn. She had a twin-sized bed in the corner, a desk with a PC to the right of it, and a window slightly to the right, behind the monitor. She had a beautiful view of the drab block walls that held a business she never went into, a law office or something. Sometimes, the window that faced hers would have a light on but she could never see inside.

It was one mystery she didn’t care to unravel.

She sat in her desk chair, an old rocking chair her parents were going to throw away, and sat at her computer as she did most nights. Sometimes she’d write, other times she’d research, and other times she’d play something like Civilization, which would make her whole night disappear. It was fun, though, when the right people were online. She wasn’t doing that tonight. Instead, she logged into her email, expecting feedback from non-Shujin people to come through there. Keiko always posted her personal email address at the end of every story in case anyone had leads or feedback. Most of the time, it just landed her more spam.

It bore a bit more fruit today, mostly of the bitter variety. All the parents that didn’t call Kobayakawa angrily decided must have decided to email Keiko. They ranged from anger at Keiko for publishing such rubbish to anger at the school for allowing such terrible events to occur, like Keiko could do anything about it. There were a few other emails, though, that Keiko was more than happy to answer. Publishers from across the city had reached out to get permission to run the story, which she happily approved, for a fee of 10,000 yen. That wasn’t very much, Keiko knew, in the world of freelance journalism. She also made sure to let the publishers know just how many papers the story would be running in. She didn’t want any of them to think they were buying exclusive rights to the story. She’d have charged out the ass for that.

She was sitting on gold and she knew it. 

She’d finally made it to the bottom of her email list and the final two were the polar opposites of each other. The one she saw first filled her with sheer terror.

_ Miss Keiko Miyahara, _

__ _ I am messaging to warn you of our intent to sue if you do not issue a retraction of your story alleging heinous crimes by our client, Suguru Kamoshida. You have until April 26. _

The email wasn’t signed but the address should have been easily traceable. She pulled up her phone and sent two messages, the first to Makoto.

**Keiko:** Your sister is a lawyer, correct?

**Makoto:** Yeah, why?

**Keiko:** I just got an unsigned email threatening to sue

**Makoto:** For what, having too much evidence?   
**Keiko:** that’s what I’m saying, though.

**Keiko:** Just, could you ask your sister if she’s heard about the case?

**Makoto:** I can do that. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.

**Keiko:** Thanks bae

**Makoto:** you are far too comfortable with me

She then sent another message, this one through an online chat app she and her friends used to play Civilization.

**SendNews:** Anyone bored?

**Alibaba:** me

**SendNews:** I need to know who this is. 5672loawq@mail.co.jp

**Alibaba:** Easy

**Alibaba:** Not easy. Doesn’t exist.

**SendNews:** Ah. A lawyer wouldn’t send from an email like that, though, right?

**Alibaba:** No good lawyer.

**Alibaba:** not that I know anything about lawyers

**Alibaba:** I’ve never been sued before.

**Alibaba:** nope, never. 

**SendNews:** Appreciate your help.

**Alibaba:** I’m still looking into it. I’ll have something by tomorrow.

**Skullkid:** dammit. I miss all the fun

**Alibaba:** you can barely turn on a computer

**Skullkid:** you can’t even leave your house

**Alibaba:** okay fuck you

**Skullkid has been kicked from the server**

**SendNews:** you don’t even have permission to do that on this server

**Alibaba:** permission schmermission

Now that she had taken care of the first email, tentatively, she decided to open the second one. If opening the first one was like ripping off a bandage, opening the second one was like opening a birthday present. She’d received an email from the aforementioned Ichiko Ohya.

_ Hi, I’m Ichiko Ohya, a reporter with the Setagaya Journal. I’m reaching out because I came across your story on Suguru Kamoshida. I was wondering if you’d be willing to meet up to discuss the story further. I’m not trying to poach it from you. But there are circumstances surrounding that case that I’m not comfortable talking about over email. I’ll be at Crossroads in Shinjuku Tuesday night, if you can meet me. Lala-chan’s a friend, she won’t mind that you’re underage.  _

‘Guess I’m going to Shinjuku, then.’ She typed out a brief reply, slipped into some clothes that weren’t school clothes and grabbed an over the shoulder bag. She’d kept only the necessities in it: a clean shirt, an AP Stylebook, hand sanitizer and a switchblade she didn’t know how to use. She walked downstairs, noticing that her parents weren’t home yet. That was good, because the less people around to ask why she was going to Shinjuku, the better.

She exited the house and entered the main drag of Yongen-Jaya, that stretch of road that might as well have been a sidewalk because nobody could fit a car down it. Most of the stores on that stretch were closed, bar the grocery store and the back-alley clinic where Tae Takemi terrorized the desperate. She was a good doctor from what Keiko knew. She was just surly. 

Keiko passed the grocery store and bumped into a familiar face who was on his way out, a young man with frizzy black hair. He wasn’t wearing his school uniform, which had the effect of making him look much older. He dropped a bag of chips upon impact but he recovered and caught them before they hit the floor. 

“Keiko-chan, hey,” he said. He still sounded a bit tired and he was definitely exasperated.

“Ren-kun.” Keiko gave him a nod as she tried to walk by.

“Where are you off to this late?” He walked by her side to keep up with her. “It’s nearly 9, shouldn’t you be at home?”

“It’s so nice of you to worry about the damsel in distress but where I go at night isn’t any of your concern,” Keiko said, then thought for a second. “Actually, where I go any time of day isn’t any of your concern.”

“Nice Hermione impression, but I can recognize the look of somebody about to do something stupid.” He wore a crooked grin that Keiko really wanted to ignore.

‘Damn it. He’s better than I thought.’ “I’m heading to Shinjuku.”

“Now, I’m just simple country folk,” Ren said, exaggerating the ‘o’ sound in the last two words, “but isn’t Shinjuku just a bit dangerous?”

Keiko sighed. “It is. You are correct.”

“And you’re just going there alone.” She didn’t like the patronizing look he was giving her.

“That’s the plan, yes.” She tried to glare back but it had no effect. 

“I… can’t let you do that.” Ren looked like he was making a decision against his better judgment. “I’ll come with you.”

Keiko wanted to kick and scream, and argue, and yell, but she didn’t. She really didn’t want to be going to Shinjuku alone, even if it was a Tuesday night. Walking around somewhere like that, especially if she was visibly nervous, would be ‘asking for it.’

‘Is it victim blaming if I’m blaming myself for something I haven’t done yet?’

She shook her head, as if coming out of a daze, realizing she’d let Ren’s words hang in the air for too long. 

She gave a genuine smile, different from the one she afforded for sources and people she needed help from. “Thank you.”

Ren startled, not expecting her to let him join without an argument. “Any time, Phantom Thief.”

“Aw, fuck. You too?”

“No, but it’s pretty funny.” 

The two started their way towards the station and boarded the train for Shibuya, where they’d connect to another train for Shinjuku. 

“I can’t believe people think I’m the one that posted those calling cards,” Keiko grumbled. “I’ve never once taunted anyone like that.”

Ren wore that stupid crooked grin at the mention of the Phantom Thieves. “I think your reporting inspired somebody else to act.” 

“So, it’s my fault some vigilante went after the volleyball coach.”

“Nah. History is full of actors inspired by the forgotten names,” he said thoughtfully. “Like Pinochet. The Americans that enabled his ideals rarely get the blame. One of them got a holiday named after him.”

“I don’t know who that is.”

“Chilean dictator. CIA appointed leader after they decided they didn’t like who the Chileans voted for.” Ren gave a sad look. “He killed a lot of people.”

Keiko had a million questions, some related to Chilean politics but one related to Ren. “Why do you know this?”

“I had a month in juvy,” that stupid grin was back. “What was I supposed to do besides read?”

“You really weren’t lying about being top of your class.”

“Nope. I wasn’t a criminal, until they made me one,” he said, a melancholy tone in his voice. 

Keiko could tell he didn’t like the label. “You still don’t seem like a criminal.”

“Words have meaning, and in the eyes of the law, that’s what I am.”

She didn’t have a good response to that. “That’s such bullshit.”

“I’m just happy to be a free man.” The train reached Shinjuku and they exited. “For now, at least.”

Keiko wanted to pry and find out what he meant by that. He’d already accused her of making plans to do something stupid and she felt she could detect something similar. It didn’t take an expert, she thought. Fewer words were more ominous than ‘for now’.

Shinjuku at night was bright and colorful, mostly because of the neon lights everywhere and also because the hosts shilling their clubs to those walking by. They were mostly ignored. Pedestrians in Shinjuku on a Tuesday night almost always had a destination in mind and knew better than to initiate any conversation with these scumbags. 

To Ren’s credit, he fended off most of the hosts that tried to approach with ease. One particularly enthusiastic host trying to offer Keiko a job got met with a steely gaze that Keiko found far more terrifying than anything she’d dealt with from Kamoshida.

“She’s a bit young for you, bro.” Ren said ‘bro’ mockingly, imitating the host’s language.

The host cursed and they kept walking until they hit Crossroads, a hole-in-the-wall that was a few steps below street level. It looked like a bit of a dive from the outside but she was surprised when she stepped in. She was greeted by a classy, warm atmosphere. The wood bar was polished immaculately, and the walls were a soft color that played nice with the mood lighting. A jukebox or stereo somewhere out of the view of the public provided soft piano music that was just loud enough to be noticeable but quiet enough that nobody needed to yell over it. A large person wearing a floral kimono was tending bar. The bar was surprisingly empty, minus a lump sitting at the far end nursing a drink.

“You kids supposed to be in here?” Their voice was deep in a too-many-cigarettes sort of way.

“Uh,” Keiko stammered before putting on a professional face and voice. “I’m looking for Ichiko Ohya.”

“Ah,” the way they spoke reminded Keiko of Sojiro a little. “Ichi-chan told me you might show up.” Lala gave Ren the once over. “You’re Keiko-chan?”

Keiko nodded. 

“You should introduce your friend here,” Lala looked over at Ren. “He’s a cutie.”

“Amamiya,” Ren said, then bowed. “I’m supposed to be her terrifying bodyguard.”

“Oh, you’re just so ferocious.” Ren laughed and Lala gestured Keiko towards the end of the bar, where a woman in a black shirt with a black bob haircut was hunched over a glass of whiskey. “That’s Ichi-chan.” Lala shouted across the bar. “Ichi-chan! You’ve got company.”

Keiko didn’t know why she  _ didn’t _ expect Ohya to be drunk if she was hanging out at a bar. What else was there to do at a bar? 

Just then, she heard Ren and Lala share a laugh. He’d apparently found something to do that wasn’t get drunk at a bar.

Ohya didn’t notice Keiko’s approach, which left Keiko standing there awkwardly. She made the decision to tap the drunkard on the shoulder lightly; she didn’t want to startle her. Ohya turned her head and looked at the young girl.

“Can I help you?” She asked in an annoyed tone. “Can’t you tell I’m drowning my sorrows here?”

“You invited me,” Keiko replied nervously. “I’m Keiko Miyahara.”

Ohya startled, nearly spilling her drink. “Shit! I can’t believe you actually showed up.”

“I literally replied to your email telling you I’d be here.”

Ohya gave a sheepish smile. “Ah. I kind of broke my phone.” She pulled a cracked iPhone out of her pocket. It wouldn’t turn on, Keiko was sure, as the guts were leaking out one side. “I invited you before the chief ruined my day.”

“Ah, yeah. I always regret making plans when I’m in a good mood.”

The sulking journo laughed. “That’s the business, kid. But, you’re here and I’m drunk, so this is probably the best time to talk about this anyway.”

“Let’s get down to it, then,” Keiko looked at her woozy counter-part. “Before you pass out.” She took a seat next to her.

“Oh, please, I can hold my liquor.” Ohya looked slightly offended.

“You can barely hold your head up.”

She moved a stray strand of hair out of her face absent-mindedly. “That just means I had a good time.”

Keiko laughed. “I don’t like your use of the past tense.”

“Sorry,” Ohya huffed. “I got taken off the news beat today.”

Keiko was taken aback. “ _ What? _ ” One of her personal heroes was taken off of news?

“I had a similar reaction.” She took a drink. “I’m on entertainment now. I guess I dug where I wasn’t supposed to.”

“What are you even covering now?”

“Some shogi princess, or whatever.” Ohya spat the words. “I don’t know. I haven’t even started the story yet.”

Keiko couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “That’s so far beneath you.”

Ohya took a bigger drink, a gulp. She called for Lala to pour her another drink but Lala was busy carrying on with Ren. “Your friend is quite the charmer.”

“He’s a nuisance.” Keiko didn’t want to think about the guy that was supposed to be her protection behaving like one of the hosts he was supposed to be protecting her from.

“Lala-chan’s a good judge of character. If she likes him, he’s a good person.” Ohya looked down into her empty drink. “I looked into Suguru Kamoshida today.”

“You mean, my story?”

Ohya nodded. “You knocked it out of the park. Are you really running that paper alone?” Keiko nodded. “That’s fucking outrageous. You’re more competent than my own boss.” She sighed a long sad sigh. “He’s a dick. Anyway, Kamoshida has some connections you won’t want coming after you.”

Keiko suspected as such, given how much leverage he supposedly had on the school’s administration. 

“You remember a Suzuki-chan?” Keiko nodded. “And Hasegawa?”

Keiko nodded again. “What about them? Didn’t they transfer?”

“If they transferred, there wouldn’t be obituaries for them sitting in our unused story files.”

“Fuck.”

“My old partner,” Ohya swallowed hard, “had correspondence with Hasegawa’s mother before her incident. I’m assuming you know of the rumors about Kayo?” Keiko nodded and Ohya continued. “They’d had enough evidence piled up to run a story similar to yours. Kaname Hasegawa, age 16, sexual assault victim. Then the other girl, Suzuki-chan, had the same story. Hasegawa had photo evidence.”

“They tried to come forward?”

Ohya nodded. “Kayo put in a call to the school to confirm the assaults had been reported to them. Both girls were dead within a couple days.”

“How’d they get them?”

“I don’t know. My guess?” Ohya leaned in. “Mental shutdown.”

Keiko’s blood ran cold.

“Can you get me those obits?”

“I’m not losing my job to get scooped by a kid,” Ohya said. “Just be glad I gave you the warning.”

Keiko expected something along these lines. “That’s fine.” She had other ways to get them. “I need to process this.”

“I don’t blame you.” Ohya pulled out a piece of paper. “Give me your phone number. I’ll be in contact once I get a new one.”

Keiko did as she was told, then walked back towards Ren, grabbing him and leaving the bar before she started crying. She wasn’t normally the type to cry, but when she did, it was an all-night ordeal. She knew to expect heartbreaking stories eventually. She wasn’t expecting the heartbreaking story to be about the deaths of two of her classmates.

She didn’t say much to Ren until they got back to Yongen-Jaya. He tried to make conversation but she shut him down. “Not now. Once we get back.” He nodded.

They’d returned to LeBlanc at 10:30. Sojiro was gone for the night but Ren invited her in for a cup of decaf. He wouldn’t let her drink anything with caffeine in it that late at night. She took a seat at the bar while he went to work.

“What happened?” He asked with some trepidation.

“We had a couple students go missing last semester.” Her voice hitched and cracked. “They’re both dead.”

“ _ No. _ ” Ren said quietly as anger crossed his face.

“Suzuki and Hasegawa. They were a couple of Kamoshida’s volleyball players.”

“That fucking asshole.”

“They’d reported him for sexual assault. Rape. Whatever.” Keiko felt like her soul was leaving her body. “Ohya thinks they were mental shutdown victims.”

Ren looked like he didn’t know how to react but he showed some recognition at the words.

“They’re these cases where people just drop.” She could feel the tears coming. “They’re alive,” she hiccuped. “But just barely. They breathe. They can walk. But they can’t do much else.”

“That’s horrible.”

“They normally die soon after. Typically falling into a coma.” She stopped hiding the tears but she avoided the hysterics. Ren finished the cup and set it in front of her. He sat next to her and rubbed her back while she sobbed. “I’m worried I’m next.”

“Is that why Ohya reached out?” 

Keiko nodded. “She thinks Kamoshida is in with whoever is causing them.”

Ren’s breath hitched. “Fuck.” He became frantic. “I-”

She cut him off. “I’m going to go home and sleep. I don’t know if I’ll wake up tomorrow.” She choked back a sob. “Thanks for your help tonight. I’ll write something about you for the paper that can go out posthumously. Makoto is in charge, now.”

She left the cafe in tears, slightly distracted by thoughts of what Sojiro would say if he saw a girl leaving the place that late at night, sobbing. He would definitely accuse her of having a crush on Ren, which couldn’t be further from the truth.

Keiko was so happy the backstreets of Yongen-Jaya were empty. She could sob in peace, with only the ambience created by the mews of alleycats.

She reached her house just minutes later. She’d ambled down the street, not wanting to face her parents. Luckily, they were already in bed when she entered the home. The lights were off. There wasn’t a note asking where she was. They never did check in on her. It would be nice if they cared. If she didn’t wake up tomorrow, they probably wouldn’t notice. If it were up to her parents, her body would rot for weeks. They’d only notice her death because of the stench.

Ren would notice. He was too much of a people person to just forget about somebody like that. The old man was the same way. Sojiro would say something.

Makoto would probably notice, too, when Sunday came and she was stuck designing a newspaper she knew very little about. 

That would actually be kind of funny. Would she even figure out how to set up an .indd file? Could she PDF pages if she were even capable of designing a page?”

Keiko sighed as she entered her own room. Prez was far too competent to not figure those things out. What took her years of practice would probably take Makoto a few minutes. 

‘There’s no use in being bitter now.’ She choked back a sob and sat back down at her computer. To think, she was so excited to meet one of her heroes tonight. Her return home had turned into a death march. Kamoshida already had two other students killed. What was a third?

She’d planned on writing a few things that could be released posthumously: a story about Ren’s records being falsified was the least she could do. She had a second story in mind about the deaths of Hasagawa and Suzuki but that would require Alibaba’s cooperation. She powered on the computer and sat down at her desk. The chat app was already open with a few notifications from Alibaba.

**Alibaba:** id’d the guy makin threats

**Alibaba:** how the fuck did you piss off Medjed

**SendNews:** I did what now

**Alibaba:** dude’s parading around as medjed

**Alibaba:** he’s not, tho. It’s some tech company president. Tread lightly

**SendNews:** fuck. Got a name?

**Alibaba:** Kazou Ryou. Head of Ryou Internet Security

**Alibaba:** he’s way less competent than I expected

**SendNews:** that’s.. Shit.

**Alibaba:** I gotchu. Don’t worry about him.

**SendNews:** what are you gonna do

**Alibaba:** what i do best. Fuck with him til he fucks off

**SendNews:** i still have no clue how you pull off half the shit you do

**Alibaba:** my mom rolled max in proficiency and mins in everything else

**SendNews:** i have one more thing I need you to look into. I know I’m asking for a lot.

**Alibaba:** I got nothin better to do

**SendNews:** Can you retrieve two obits from the Setagaya Journal? Katsuo Suzuki and Kaname Hasegawa

**Alibaba:** gimme a minute

**Alibaba:** _Alibaba has sent attachments ‘suzuki.zip’ and ‘hasegawa.zip’_

**SendNews:** How?

**Alibaba:** don’t ask questions you don’t want answers to

**Alibaba:** gotta go. Cya

**SendNews:** thank you for your help.

Keiko took no time in opening the obituaries. Suzuki’s was first.

**_Katsuo Suzuki_** _(1999-2015)_

_ Katsuo Suzuki, Shibuya, passed away unexpectedly in her sleep Wednesday, December 9. She leaves behind a mother, Hana, and a dog, Akira. She was key to a Shujin Academy volleyball team that finished second in nationals and she had every intention of continuing her career at the college level while studying agriculture. The family is holding a private visitation for friends and family only. _

“Is that it?” Keiko asked the question out loud. “That’s all she got?”

‘They took her life and all she got was a lousy 382 characters?’ She was murdered! Keiko was furious. 2 young students lost their lives and the prefectural newspapers helped cover it up. She opened the .jpg that accompanied the obituary. The photo they wanted to run with Suzuki’s obituary was very much her, from what Keiko knew. Bright purple hair, a bit unruly. She was posing with Kana Hasegawa, who absolutely dwarfed her. They were both in their volleyball uniforms, and were sticking their tongues out. Keiko wasn’t particularly close to either but she couldn’t help but feel a profound, heavy sadness. These two were best friends.

‘I get to join them, soon.’ Keiko felt the sobs returning but she stopped and held her breath for a second. That seemed to quell them.

She opened the other file.

**_Kaname Hasegawa_ ** _ (2000-2015) _

_ Kaname Hasegawa, Shibuya, passed away unexpectedly in her sleep on Thursday, December 10. She leaves behind a mother, Maya, also of Shibuya, and a father, Greg Djialynzky, of Kansas City, Mizz., USA. She also leaves behind a grandmother, Moe. Hasegawa was a key figure in the Shujin Academy volleyball team’s second place finish in last year’s nationals. She was intending to continue her career while following in her mother’s footsteps, attending university with the intention of becoming a social worker. The family is holding a private visitation for family and friends only. _

The photo that accompanied was jarring for Keiko. It was Kana standing next to her mother, father and grandmother inside Shujin’s gym. It made sense that Kana was as tall as she was. Her father might have been taller than Kamoshida.

‘These are going on the front page of the school paper on Monday morning.’ Keiko sighed. One last act of defiance against that fucked up school.

And to think, she was finally getting what she wanted: Funding, a staff, electric content.

It was weird laying in bed knowing she probably wasn’t going to wake up again. There was something freeing about it. Peaceful.

She snored softly.

===

_ Wednesday, April 20, Early Morning _

“It’s weird, you know.”

Keiko felt herself waking up. She found herself standing in a dark room with red accents that was eerily reminiscent of the train tunnels. There was a man dressed in black and navy striped garb with a pointy black mask in front of her.

“You’re by far the nosiest teenager I’ve ever met. That includes myself.” Keiko tried to speak but realized she couldn’t. Someone spoke for her. It was her voice, she thought, but she couldn’t tell what was being said. The man in front of her laughed. “You’ve gotten an awfully big head, but I won’t lie and tell you I’m not impressed. The most experienced of reporters haven’t gotten as close to the truth as you have. Does it make you  _ happy _ to know that you’re better than Kayo Murakami? I bet her partner would be so impressed. It’s a shame I don’t remember her name, otherwise I’d pay her a visit, too.”

More shouting from herself. She felt surges of anger but still understood nothing. 

“Oh-ho! I’m going to miss you, and we’ve only just met! You would make an incredible chew toy.” He chuckled to himself, sounding less maniacal than before. He had the eyes of a predator. “But, father always told me not to play with my food.” He lunged towards her and she felt her body dissolve into something more savage, or something more devious, perhaps.

Everything went black.

Then everything flashed.

Then she couldn’t put a thought together.

She tried to speak but only grumbles and muffled sounds came out. She tried to think of her name and came up with nothing.

She couldn’t even tell what language she was thinking in. She didn’t know what country she was in.

There was a grey ceiling above her and a fan-like noise to her right. She couldn’t place where she knew them. She sat up and took stock of the room. A large piece of wood was in front of her, a portal to another world. Or something. 

“Where…” she couldn’t think of the words. She looked out the window at the grey stone front of the building across the street. She stuck her hand out but met glass.There was a light on in the window across the abyss. 

She remembered not wanting to know why it was on. She was curious now, though.

“The light…”

Then everything came flooding back. “Keiko Miyahara.”

That sounded right. “I’m in my room.”

Something in her head told her she was correct. “The noise is my computer.”

“I’m alive.” She gasped. “But I’m not supposed to be.”

The exhaustion hit her like a lightsaber stabbing through her chest. She fell back into her bed.

Within seconds, she was snoring softly and peacefully as she hadn’t in years. Her dreams were pleasant: She couldn’t help but feel like somebody, somewhere, was cursing her name. She also couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming gratitude towards the Phantom Thieves.

So many things felt perfect. But a couple felt wrong.

She’d handle those in the morning. 

===

_ Morning _

Keiko woke up earlier than normal, feeling completely refreshed. Considering she was sitting on approximately three hours of sleep, she thought, she should be exhausted. Instead, she practically leapt out of bed and into the shower. It was steamy and warm and she enjoyed just about everything about it.

She was alive and that was wonderful.

Her phone buzzed when she got back to her room. She took a few minutes to slip on her school uniform before she looked at it again, almost sure that whatever was on it would ruin her good mood.

**Ren:** I told Sojiro about what happened yesterday. He wanted to know if you’d stop by for breakfast.

**Keiko:** Curry? For breakfast?

**Ren:** don’t knock it til you try it.

**Keiko:** be there in a few.

Keiko didn’t know why she was so excited to spend more time around Ren, but she supposed she had grown fond of the old coot fostering him. Ren was okay, too.

She walked down the stairs and exited the front door, making her way towards LeBlanc. Her parents hadn’t yet gotten up for work, their regular tardiness part of the reason they were stuck living on Yongen-Jaya in the first place. It was tough being the responsible one in the family.

Keiko entered the doorway to LeBlanc with a familiar chime. The sign on the door said “closed” but Ren was sitting at the counter bantering with Sojiro.

“Sojiro, I’m telling you, I had nothing to do with Kamoshida,” Ren was arguing back. His tone was more playful, though. “She’s the one that posted the calling cards!”

He pointed at Keiko who frowned. “I just woke up and I’m already getting blamed for shit. Thanks, Amamiya.”

“No longer on first name basis?” Sojiro raised an eyebrow.

“Not until this criminal scum behaves,” Keiko said.

Ren gave a mock hurt face. “Fine, I won’t tell you about my new job,  _ or _ ask you how your night went.”

Keiko’s expression grew serious. “It was…” she took a breath, trying to think of a good descriptor. “Well, I survived it.” She thought for a second. “Wait. Did Lala-chan hire you? To do what?” 

“That’s good,” Sojiro said sarcastically, interrupting Ren’s reply. “I always like when I wake up after falling asleep the night before, too.”

Keiko chuckled. “You’re gettin’ to that age, old man, where that’s not a guarantee.”

“Can it, kid, or I won’t feed you,” he said as he placed a plate of curry and a cup of coffee in front of her.

“Thank you, Sojiro.” She spoke sincerely.

“Anytime, brat.”

“Sojiro called you a brat, that means he likes  _ you _ ,” Ren teased.

“Shut up, Rennifer,” Keiko said with a mouthful of curry. “This is incredible.”

“Thank you,” Sojiro said. “Ren said you had a rough night and that you might need cheering up.”

“You have no idea,” she said, thinking about that odd feeling of  _ nothingness _ she felt briefly. “I still don’t know how I’m going to handle school today.”

“Worried about Kamoshida?” Ren asked. “And did you call me Rennifer?”

“I am. And Kobayakawa. I don’t trust them to not retaliate. I didn’t even expect to be alive this morning.” She didn’t reply to his other question.

Sojiro raised an eyebrow. “What could you have done that would have gotten you killed?”

“That story you read? It went pretty high up.” Keiko looked down at the now empty plate. She really plowed through the curry. “I got a scary, shadowy email from the head of a tech company yesterday.”

Sojiro looked like he wanted to respond with a solution, but he didn’t. “I’m sorry to hear that. Hopefully, they leave you alone.”

“I doubt they will.” After Keiko spoke, she swore she heard a series of meows coming from Ren’s bag.

“Oh, sorry, Morgana.” Ren pulled his bag up to the seat next to him and let a black tuxedo cat with bright blue eyes and a yellow collar out. He was meowing incessantly and arrogantly, if such a thing were possible. Ren scratched behind his ears. “Keiko’s fine, she’s not going to rat us out.”

“I’m sorry,” Keiko said. “Are you… talking to your cat?”

“The kid brought that little guy in weeks ago and neither of them ever shut up.” Sojiro grumbled. “I swear he can talk to animals or something.”

“That’s a talent. Why was he in your bag?”

“Oh, I,” Ren stammered. “I bring him to school with me. He sleeps in my desk.”

“Ren!” Keiko grabbed the lapel of his shirt. “That’s a goddamn story if I ever heard one.” She huffed. “You have to tell me this shit.”

“I feel like you just use me for journalism.”

“It’s not my fault you chose to be an interesting person.” Keiko took a sip of coffee. 

“I just want to fit in,” Ren said, mocking a crying voice.

===

_ Monday, May 2nd, Morning _

The last few weeks were banner weeks for the  _ Shujin Academy Gazette _ . Publishing the obituaries of two disappeared students created waves through more than the school and Keiko was now stuck handling a reader-base she wasn’t prepared for. Every issue seemed more important than the last. In the time since, the police investigation into the deaths of Suzuki and Hasegawa had been reopened and Kobayakawa was placed on administrative leave by the school board during an emergency special meeting. That was another huge story that she actually had Makoto write and she did an incredible job. There were even a few prospective reporters from the student body that wanted to join the club. Keiko was ecstatic at the idea that she might not have to do everything alone anymore. 

However, no story she’d written thus far would match up to the events that were happening before her eyes. 

Kobayakawa, the fat lard, was going on and on about the importance of life after giving an update on Shiho Suzui’s condition like he  _ wasn’t _ eating himself into an early grave. Keiko would have given her left leg and a pinky finger for an interruption.

She got one, no sacrifices needed.

“I… have been reborn.” Kamoshida’s dramatic voice rang through the gymnasium after he burst through the door. “I will confess everything to you all.” Keiko immediately pulled out her phone and started recording.

The rumor mill started almost instantly before he could even say what he was confessing. 

“I have repeatedly done things that were unbecoming of a teacher.” He wore a somber expression. “Verbally abusing students… physically abusing my team. Sexually assaulting female students.”

‘Asshole still has to make sure we know he isn’t gay, though.’

“I am the reason why Shiho Suzui tried to kill herself. I… have played a role in the murders of Shujin students. Katsuo Suzuki and Kana Hasegawa attempted to turn me in for attempted sexual assault.” A collective gasp went through the student body. “I conferred with Principal Kobayakawa. They were dead within days. Mental shutdowns.” All hell had broken loose.

He said he thought of the school as his own castle and admitted to everything Keiko had caught on video. He was trying to get Ren, Ryuji and Mishima suspended. These are things he said, but nobody was listening. Someone had already called the police. Kobayakawa was sweating bacon grease on stage, shouting to get Kamoshida out of there, and that he didn’t know what he was saying.

“I shall kill myself in retribution for my sins!” He shouted, the baritone in his voice ringing through the room.

Takamaki shouted back. “No!”

Gasps came from all around.

“You don’t get to run from this.” She stood firm. “You need to atone for what you’ve done. You need to face punishment.”

The room broke out into murmurs discussing the rumors as Kamoshida was taken out of the gym by an escort of other teachers. They had called the police. He was going to turn himself in.

“Does this have something to do with the Phantom Thieves?” One of the boys standing near Keiko asked this aloud, then looked at her. He stepped away, like she had anything to do with it.

“Was something done to Kamoshida?”

“Did he admit to everything that was in the school paper?”

Keiko couldn’t keep up with the rumor mill. She had a story to write. 

Holy fuck, did she have a story to write. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First things first: Congratulations to the Polish-Americans, for getting representation in a story that has nothing to do with Poland, halushki, or Chicago. This is truly a banner day for them. 
> 
> I've been wanting to write about a mental shutdown through the eyes of someone going through it from the moment I found out about them in the game. It's such a disturbing topic, to me. 
> 
> The idea that two students could die and it be kept on the DL isn't as far fetched as you'd expect. A student, from the days when I was still in college, passed away and it was weeks before we found out. His family wanted to take their time to grieve, so his name wasn't given to a newspaper, or to anyone besides our principal. The only thing any of us knew is he stopped showing up to class. 
> 
> There's a zero percent chance that a young person could live in the same neighborhood as Futaba and not be subject to her spying. 
> 
> I didn't plan on Keiko and Sojiro getting close but he's the best. I'd read a fic that was about Sojiro's younger days. Maybe I'll write a fic about that. Somebody please stop me from starting another fic. I have a problem.
> 
> Keiko discovered the news about Kayo through her publisher. If there's anything you ever learn about journalists, it's that we're like spies who are terrible at their job by design. 
> 
> I use a singular they for Lala at first until somebody (Ohya, in this instance) uses a pronoun. A very simple thing I can do that makes people happy is getting their pronouns right. It doesn't make anyone's life harder and if you don't know, ask. In this case, Keiko and Ren don't think to because teenagers are self-absorbed as fuck. 
> 
> More obit talk: Typically, information in an obit is limited to listing the family, the TDP (time date place) of the funeral, and club memberships/career. For younger people, they're often more feature-y, unless that person died of an overdose or had a record. Then the families are usually very quick to get it over with. I know that sounds harsh, but it's the way it goes. 
> 
> Video: print journalism is no longer just print journalism. Everybody wants video, even if it's shot on a cell phone.
> 
> Thank you for reading. I'm really hoping the content doesn't get too dense but I'm really enjoying writing this story. It's much more grounded than the other. I'd like to say you won't guess what happens next, but in news, if it's what it seems, it's not, and if it seems that it's not what it seems, it probably is.


	3. Safety in the Spotlight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dayparting- The biggest news of the day is rarely on that morning's front page. Most orgs will have a lead story on website at around 2 p.m. I have no idea why 2 p.m., but it's apparently the time during the day when news websites see the most traffic.
> 
> Copy- the literal text of a story is referred to as copy. It's kind of an outdated term but it gets used fairly often, especially where places are still printing a physical paper.

_ Monday, May 2, Morning _

Keiko really loved her Monday days off and on a normal Monday, classes being cancelled meant she was  _ off _ off. Sadly, today was different. She wouldn’t be taking advantage of the chance for an extra nap. She had a story to write and first-hand accounts to convey. She’d already sent off pitch emails to every news organization she could think of. She’d gotten several emails back expressing interest. Her deadline was noon. She had two hours.

**_Olympic hero confesses to role in mental shutdown murders of Shujin students_ **

_ Olympic gold medalist volleyball player Suguru Kamoshida has confessed to sexually assaulting and playing a role in the mental shutdowns of two Shujin Academy students, Katsuo Suzuki and Kana Hasegawa. _

_ Kamoshida interrupted an assembly on the sanctity of life at the school Monday morning, also claiming he is at fault for second-year Shiho Suzui’s suicide attempt. Suzui is currently in stable condition and is expected to make a full recovery.  _

_ “I am the reason why Shiho Suzuio tried to kill herself,” Kamoshida said. “I have played a role in the murders of Shujin Students. Katzuo Suzuki and Kana Hasegawa attempted to turn me in for sexual assault. I conferred with Principal Kobayakawa. They were dead within days. Mental Shutdowns.”  _

_ He claimed he viewed the school as his own personal castle, and confirmed the context behind a video previously released by the Shujin Academy Gazette, where he threatened students with expulsion for questioning him in relation to Suzui’s state. _

_ Implicated in Kamoshida’s statement is Shujin Principal Tokou Kobayakawa, who refused to comment.  _

_ Kamoshida said he intended to kill himself but was talked out of it by second-year Ann Takamaki, who told him he should instead atone for his sins and face punishment.  _

_ Kamoshida was escorted out of the school by police.  _

_ These events took place nearly two weeks after a group calling themselves the Phantom Thieves of Hearts claimed they were going to rid Kamoshida of his distorted desires. The incident is thought to not be much more than a prank. _

She attached photos from the confession and a copy of the calling card, and hit send. Keiko waited for confirmation back that the places that had responded received the story. An hour later, she was laying in her bed, satisfied with the work she’d done that day. It was almost like she hadn’t even had a near death experience that morning.

Things were nice and quiet for a while.

Her phone rang at 1:53 p.m. and she picked up, stupidly.

“Holy fuck, kid.” Ohya sounded sober for once. And a bit tense.

“Hi, Ohya-san,” Keiko said, unable to hide the sleep from her voice.

“How’d you get your hands on this copy?” Ohya spoke incredulously. 

“Right place, right time.” Keiko unsuccessfully stifled a yawn. “Happened at school.”

“Shit, kid.” She was breathing heavy. Ohya sounded nervous.

“What?” 

“You might be the most famous high schooler in the country within the next 3 minutes.” 

Keiko looked at the clock. 1:57 p.m. “What’s in three minutes?”

“Dayparting! The best stories drop at 2 p.m.!” Ohya yelled this into the phone’s earpiece. She must not have been in an office or at Crossroads. She’d have been quieter if she were. 

“I figured I had til the morning.” 

“Oh god, she’s stupid.” Ohya sighed. “What year do you think it is? Your story breaks on every news site you sold it to in… one minute now!”

Keiko finally sat up, albeit slowly. “Oh.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if someone tries to get you on TV.”

“But that would break the camera.” Keiko had no interest in being on TV. 

“You shittin’ me? They’ll get you a hair and makeup team and you’ll be the next Detective Prince.”

“Fuck Akechi.” She’d seen him on TV a few times to know that everything he did was bullshit. “I didn’t deduce shit.” Keiko gave a frustrated grunt. “I did what I had to do.”

“I know.” Ohya was quieter now.

“I did the right thing.” Keiko sighed. “But what’s right and what’s smart don’t always line up.”

“Right.”

“What should I do?” Keiko didn’t even know if she had options. She was lowkey still freaked about that dream she had just two weeks ago.

“My advice? Lay low.” Ohya said. “Leading with it being mental shutdown-related was ballsy, and probably the right thing to do but it might get you killed.”

“Am I even safe from a shutdown if I lock myself down?”

“...nobody knows, kid.”

“You’re a lot of help, you know that?”

“I realize I’m probably just making things worse.”

Keiko didn’t reply for a while but Ohya was still on the line.

“I’m going on with the rest of my day,” she said. “Call me if you need anything, but also, don’t call me, please.”

“You sound like you need a drink.”

“Never tried, but you’re probably right.” Keiko hung up.

Keiko really did feel like she needed a drink but she assumed alcohol wasn’t the answer. Coffee might be, though, so she decided a trip to LeBlanc was in order.

Her phone buzzed before she could make it to her house’s front door. 

**Unknown:** This is Kasumi. Ren-senpai gave me your number. My dad wants to know if you’d be willing to be on Good Morning Japan tomorrow.

‘I’m just going to let that one marinate for a bit.’ Keiko had no intention of ever going on television. She recalled an urban legend her babysitter told her once when she was a kid about kids appearing on a special channel at midnight, then disappearing days later. They’d turn up dead soon after. 

‘What bullshit. I just don’t want to be on TV.’ She made her way to LeBlanc, leaving her phone on the counter. She didn’t feel like dealing with whatever pain it would bring.

Yongen-Jaya was a bit busier during the day. All the businesses were open, a sight Keiko wasn’t normally around for, and the secondhand store had some clothes of some surprising quality. She ended up taking a detour and walked out with a new, well, new-to-her, pair of sneakers and some vintage shirts, which she was very excited to wear the one day a week she didn’t have school. So excited, in fact, that she bumped into Kasumi Yoshizawa on her way to LeBlanc.

“O-oh! Kasumi!” Keiko, luckily, hadn’t dropped the bag of clothes.

“Keiko-senpai! What a coincidence!” She gave a friendly smile that really wouldn’t let Keiko be mad at her. “School was crazy today, wasn’t it?”

“It was,” Keiko sighed. “I got your text, too. Sorry I didn’t reply.”

“No problem,” Kasumi said. “I wasn’t exactly comfortable asking but dad didn’t have the patience to wait for an email back.”

“Oh, shit.” Kasumi jumped at Keiko’s potty mouth. “Oh, sorry. I just realized my email is probably a cesspool right now.”

Kasumi giggled. “Where are you headed?”

“LeBlanc. I decided I needed some coffee.” 

“Well, that’s another coincidence,” Kasumi said. “I’m headed there, as well. Ren invited me over.”

“Oh, I didn’t realize you two were-”

“We aren’t!” Kasumi turned bright red. “He helped me out before school the other day and told me about LeBlanc. I figured I’d try it out.”

“He’s better advertising than that old geezer deserves,” Keiko said out loud, but more to herself than to Kasumi. “Want to head there together? If I don’t get coffee soon, I’m going to spontaneously combust.”

“It wouldn’t be very spontaneous if you expect it to happen,” Kasumi said thoughtfully.

“Erm.” Keiko stammered. “Let’s just go.”

The two made idle conversation on the brief walk to LeBlanc. It was a literal 45 second walk, so it wasn’t like they had to pretend to like each other for long, although if Keiko was being fair, she found Kasumi pleasant to be around. She struggled with being friendly in general, and she really needed to start being nicer to the people she enjoyed being around.

Keiko could admit when her mother was right.

“Ren!” Sojiro called out upstairs. “They’re back! In greater numbers!”

“Obi-Wan Sojiro, you’re our only hope!” Keiko responded. “I can’t believe somebody so old could be such a dork.”

“I, uh, my daughter really likes those movies.”

“Boss, you have a daughter?” Ren had come downstairs.

“Yeah, and you don’t get to meet her.” He glared at Ren, daring him to talk back.

“Uh, okay, Boss.” Ren replied. Keiko kind of wanted Ren to pry, but she wouldn’t push it. “What’re you guys doing here?”

“We’re both here for Sojiro,” Keiko said, earning a glare from the old man.

“She’s not lying, Senpai,” Kasumi smiled at Keiko. “When you told me about LeBlanc the other day, I decided I had to try it.”

“Hey, old timer, you owe this kid a lot,” Keiko said, sarcastically. “A strapping young lad shows up and now you have all sorts of pretty girls running around your cafe.”

“Pretty high school girls,” Sojiro corrected. “If only there were any women my age in here.”

“My grandma’s single,” Keiko shot back. “She’s about your age.”

“Do I dare ask how old your grandmother is?” 

“That depends, could you cook my food before I answer that question?” Keiko laughed. “I don’t want you to spit in it.”

“I won’t spit in your food,” Sojiro said. “I might dump it on your head, though.”

“That’s fair. I’ve earned it.” Keiko paused. “Speaking of being a pain in the ass, I need a specific pain in the ass’s expertise.”

“Me?” Ren pointed at himself.

“Bingo.” Keiko said. 

He took a seat in a booth. Keiko and Kasumi sat across from him. “I wasn’t being completely serious when I called myself a pain in the ass.”

“Yes you were,” Keiko said. “You absolutely were.”

“That does sound like something you’d say, Senpai,” Kasumi agreed. 

“You’re supposed to be on my side!”

“I’m on the side of truth!” Kasumi said, striking a dramatic pose.

Ren laughed and threw a straw wrapper at her. 

“We should get Prez here,” Keiko said. “She can lecture me on justice again while Kasumi lectures me on truth. I can get a whole ethics lesson out of it.”

“Interesting you bring her up,” Ren said. “If you’re in trouble, why not go to her?”

“She’s straight-laced and definitely not well-equipped to fend off whatever it is that’s probably about to come after me,” Keiko said, completely straight faced.

“Hey, kids, you’re school’s on TV,” Sojiro said.

Sure enough, Shujin Academy’s stock photo graced the television.

“Breaking news,” a newscaster said. “Former Olympic gold medalist Suguru Kamoshida is in police custody after confessing to being connected to the mental shutdowns of two high school girls as well as the assaults of multiple other students, including one that attempted suicide two weeks ago.”

“Ah. That’s your story.” Ren put a fist under his chin and leaned on the table.

“It is.” Keiko said. “I’m guessing, and now, this is just a guess, that I’m in some kind of danger after reporting this.”

“Good guess,” Ren said. “Especially considering what Ohya told you last time.”

The bag next to Ren meowed. He reached in and gave it a head pat.

“Do you remember anything from that night?” Ren asked after conferring with the cat.

“Did you just… consult your cat?”

“His name is Morgana.” Ren replied indignantly.

“Did you just consult Morgana?” Keiko corrected. She was used to people getting weird about their names. 

“He helps me think more clearly.”

“You’re a dork, Senpai,” Kasumi said. “It’s adorable.”

It was really fucking cute, Keiko thought. ‘Too cute. Losing focus…’ “But yeah. I remember a little bit.”

“What do you remember?”

Keiko thought about it. She remembered falling asleep and having that weird dream of the man in a black mask. She couldn’t speak, but he was taunting her. She couldn’t remember what exactly he was saying but the more she thought about it, the foggier everything became.

“I remember dreaming,” Keiko said. “A man in a black mask was attacking me but I don’t know why.”

“That’s concerning.” Ren frowned.

“But it’s just a dream,” Kasumi said. “It has no bearing on reality.”

“She’s right,” Keiko said. “I was distressed when I fell asleep that night. It makes sense that I had a weird dream.”

“Agreed. It does make sense.” Ren sighed. “Do you think it’ll happen again?”

“I don’t know,” Keiko said. “There’s something else, though. I was going to ask you before I ran into Kasumi, anyway, but the two of you together might provide a fresh perspective.”

“Go ahead.” Ren said.

“I’ve been invited to go on Good Morning Japan,” Keiko said. “I’m a bit hesitant to go on TV. Ohya thinks they’ll try and turn me into the next Detective Prince or something.”

Ren looked Keiko in the eye. “You’re asking me for advice?”

“You seem to be both a magnet for trouble and a master of evading it,” Keiko said. “This seems like trouble.”

“My father wouldn’t do this if he thought it would cause any harm,” Kasumi said, sounding defensive.

“I don’t think this is something that involves him directly,” Keiko said. “I think this involves the shadowy people that tried to contact me after that first story.”

“Shadowy people?” Ren and Kasumi shared a look.

“Medjed, or some guy pretending to be Medjed,” Keiko said. “He runs a tech company.”

“How’d you find this out?” Kasumi asked.

“That’s a good question.” Keiko mulled over telling them about Alibaba in her head but ultimately decided against it. “Regardless, that’s some firepower that I have no defense against.”

“You call them ‘shadowy,’ though.” Ren said. “That means they prefer to work away from the spotlight. They have a vested interest in keeping the story quiet, but as long as you’re in the spotlight, they risk having to come out to take you down.”

Keiko didn’t say anything. She didn’t know what to say.

“So, she should keep moving forward?” Kasumi asked. “Because the higher profile this gets, the harder it will be to take her out?”

“Hypothetically, yes,” Ren said. “Plus, even without Kamoshida, you have a firsthand account of the Phantom Thieves incident, assuming you, yourself, are not a Phantom Thief.”

“You know I’m not,” Keiko said.

“I don’t know if it’s wise to lionize the Phantom Thieves, Senpai,” Kasumi warned. “Goro Akechi keeps warning my father that they’re dangerous.”

“Goro Akechi?” Ren looked puzzled.

“Fuck Akechi,” Keiko said. “He’s a fake, spineless asshole who provides a young, friendly face for the police to spew bullshit.”

Kasumi gave her a shocked look. “Akechi-kun has always been kind to me.”

“I’m sorry, Kasumi, but he’s a snake,” Keiko said. “I know a snake when I see one, and he’s practically shedding his skin on the stage every time your father has him on.”

Kasumi frowned. “I’ve never once gotten that impression from him, but I suppose that’s not something I’d really notice.” She furrowed her brow. “But would my dad have him on TV if he was a bad person?”

“He doesn’t have to be a bad person to have somebody that dislikes him,” Ren pointed out. “Look at all the people that loved Kamoshida, and he’s a horrible person. It can work vice versa.”

“Exactly,” Keiko said. “Like Makoto. Great person, lovely woman. Great body. I hated her for years.”

“So, we need to find a way to let you ogle Akechi for your opinion to turn around?” Ren teased.

“I’m not saying that wouldn’t help,” Keiko replied in a serious tone. “Definitely helped Makoto’s case.”

Ren shifted in his seat. “I feel like you’ve objectified everyone in this room.”

“That’s not true at all, I’ve never once thought about how handsome Sojiro- nevermind.” Keiko blushed. “I’m… going to go home now. Kasumi, tell your dad that I can be there tomorrow but I’ll need an excuse note for school.”

Kasumi perked up. “Great! He’ll be so excited!” 

Keiko left LeBlanc and headed back towards her house. The story had been live online for about 45 minutes now. She was sure her email had blown up by now. Her parents weren’t home from work yet but even if they were, she might not even get a greeting when she walked back into the house. She grabbed her phone off the counter to find text messages from Makoto and nobody else.

**Makoto:** That story you put out was insane

**Makoto:** If I hadn’t been there, I wouldn’t believe it.

**Makoto:** I’m proud of you.

**Keiko:** Thanks, sweetcheeks

**Makoto:** I immediately regret it every time I give you praise

**Keiko:** Think of it as expanding your horizons

**Makoto:** I hate you

**Keiko:** my my my how the turn tables

**Makoto:** that’s not even a sentence!

**Keiko:** Oh dear. You really are innocent.

Keiko pocketed her phone, then headed up the stairs to check her email. The first thing she noticed upon powering up her computer was notifications from Alibaba.

**Alibaba:** weird question. You weren’t at a coffee shop in Yongen-Jaya this afternoon, right?   
**SendNews:** I was. Why?

**Alibaba:** Oh. I, uh, heard your conversation.

_ What. _

**SendNews:** Were you at LeBlanc?

**Alibaba:** no

**Alibaba:** I don’t leave the house

**Alibaba is now offline.**

**SendNews:** I’m taking that as a yes.

She needed to check her email again but she heard a noise downstairs. Her brain told her it was her parents returning from work but something else told her it was  _ something else _ . Paranoia wasn’t a new feeling.

Keiko grabbed a broom that was leaning against the wall upstairs. It didn’t have much weight to it but at least she could swing it to force her assailant to keep their distance. That is, if she could swing it hard enough to make a difference: She was suddenly having second thoughts about her sedentary lifestyle. 

She put the broom down when she got down the stairs and realized her first instinct was correct: Her mom had walked in the door from work. 

“Hey!” Her mom was the bubbly-ignorant type. She probably would have been much happier if Keiko was some kind of athlete or girly-girl. Instead, she got a daughter that acted almost exactly like the grandfather she wasn’t all that fond of. “How was your day?”

Keiko took a seat in an easy chair across from her mom. “Insane,” she replied. She wasn’t sure how much detail to go into. Keiko was a bit insulted that her mom hadn’t even seen the news yet.

“One of our teacher’s confessed to sexually assaulting three students and having a role in the murder of two of them.” 

“Wh-” She stammered. “Seriously? That was your school?”

“Yeah, and if you cared to look, you’d have noticed my name plastered all over the story.” Keiko tried to meet her mom’s eyes as she spoke, but her mom looked away. 

“I’m sorry,” she muttered.

“Sorry that I’m mad, maybe,” Keiko said. “But not sorry that you didn’t notice.”

“Keiko, no,” she said. “It’s not like that.”

“I don’t believe you, but it’s fine.” Keiko sighed. “I’m going to be on TV tomorrow talking about it.”

“You? On TV?”

“I’m as shocked as you are.”

“But you don’t have any clothes to wear on-” Her mom started on what Keiko knew was coming. She’d been putting off going to get new clothes for the last year. She was still short, but she’d somehow outgrown most of her non-school uniform clothes. 

“I’m wearing my Shujin uniform,” Keiko said. “I’d prefer not to miss more class than I have to.”

“Ah.”

Keiko stood up and started to head back upstairs when her dad walked in the door. ‘Great.’

She was surprised when her dad called out for her the second he walked in the door. “Keiko!” He shouted, not realizing she was already downstairs. Normally at this time she would be in her room, sleeping off the woes of the average Monday. She’d already done that today.

“Hey, dad.” She said, and tried to scurry back upstairs.

“I saw something online today,” he said. “It had your name on it.”

Her mom looked surprised and a bit ashamed. He had noticed but she hadn’t? She’d always figured she was the more attentive parent.

“Yeah, I broke the biggest story I’ll probably ever break today.” In a surprising turn of events, Keiko’s parents actually sat down with her and had a prolonged conversation about a news story she wrote. They asked about Kamoshida, Keiko’s involvement, how things were going at the school paper, and basically how life was going.

It was pathetic, Keiko thought, that something so small and normal nearly caused her to cry tears of joy as she went to bed that night.

===

_ Tuesday, May 3, Early Morning _

An email late last night told Keiko to be at the station at 8 a.m. for a pre-interview with her friend’s father. Or at least, she thought of Kasumi as a friend. They hadn’t really spent any time together outside of visiting Ren yesterday. 

She made it to the station 15 minutes early, being late one of her biggest fears. Ohya had joked that they’d turn her into the next Detective Prince, which Keiko hated.

She hated it even more when The Detective Prince himself was sitting in the waiting room outside of Shinichi Yoshizawa’s office. ‘He can’t possibly be that bad,’ was her first thought but within seconds of him making forced conversation, she had to decide between going through with the interview and doing 25 to life. 

“Good morning!” ‘God, his voice is higher pitched than mine.’ He walked over like he expected Keiko to fangirl over him.

“Good morning, Akechi-kun,” Keiko greeted him and shook his hand like she knew him. 

“Oh, I don’t recall introducing myself.” He raised an eyebrow.

“You know better than I do that you don’t have to,” Keiko said. “I’ve seen you on TV enough times.”

“Oh, of course.” He chuckled. “You’re pretty sharp.”

“Thanks,” Keiko said. “That means a lot, coming from the Detective Prince.”

“It should mean a lot, but not because of my given title,” Akechi said. “I’m genuinely impressed. You somehow broke the door open on an investigation the police hadn’t even been able to make a dent in.” Keiko was sure he thought his smile was friendly but there was something about it she didn’t like. She couldn’t put her finger on it. There was something familiar about his voice that she couldn’t pick out.

She gave him an odd look but was called into Yoshizawa’s office before she could reply.

“Break a leg, Miyahara-chan,” Akechi waved as she entered the office.

Yoshizawa closed his door and sighed. “I see you’ve met Akechi.”

“Yes. He’s, uh,” Keiko was trying to think of a nice word to use. “Pleasant.”

“He’s a lot of things,” Yoshizawa said. “Thank you for being here today on such short notice. I don’t know if you realize how big of a get you are for us.”

“We’ll see once I’m on camera,” Keiko said, chewing the inside of her lip. ‘Fuck, that’s a new one,’ she thought. She was normally a nail biter but she stopped herself from doing that today. She’d just shaken Akechi’s hand and she doesn’t know where his hands have been. “I’m actually pretty nervous.”

“I couldn’t tell,” Yoshizawa said. “My daughter told me nothing gets to you.”

“Ha!” Keiko laughed. “She sees me when I’m at my best. I’m a better writer than I am a talker.”

“Ah, an old-fashioned newswoman?” He gave a warm smile. “I would have never guessed without the sweater vest and the bowler hat. You need to get the yellowed press pass to complete the look.”

“I will deadass show up dressed like that if you ever need me on the show again.” 

He laughed. “Don’t say ‘deadass’ on the air, FYI. We’re a morning show.”

“Swearing is like, half my vocabulary, so you’re really limiting me, but I shall play by the rules.” Keiko wasn’t lying, but she wouldn’t dare swear on TV. Her grandma might be watching.

“I appreciate your cooperation, Miyahara-chan,” Yoshizawa said with a smile.

“Keiko is fine,” she said. 

“Shinichi for me, as well, then.” He pulled a notebook out of his desk. “Let’s get started.”

“This is weird. I’m normally on the other side of this,” Keiko said.

“That’s good, if I miss anything I should ask about, you can correct me,” Shinichi said. “So, I’ll start with the most obvious question. You took the video and wrote that story the day of another student’s suicide attempt. How did you think to do that?”

Keiko answered his questions honestly, but she’d save the full answers for the camera. Ren was right: the limelight might save her life.

===

“Our first guest today is a student journalist at Shujin Academy,” Shinichi spoke to the camera with a plastic smile on his face. “She’s broken open two murder cases and has discovered the most promising lead anyone has found to date on the mental shutdown cases, all at the age of 16. Please help me in giving a warm welcome to Keiko Miyahara!”

Keiko walked onto the stage absolutely shocked by how bright the lights on the stage were. Their warmth was immense and she was suddenly regretting not wearing something breezier. Her summer uniform was more breathable than what they wore the rest of the year but, and she couldn’t believe she was thinking this, a dress would have been a lot better. ‘No wonder all those idols dress skimpy. They’re trying to keep from roasting alive.’ She did take the time to give a smile and a wave at the camera, although she was sure the smile looked fake as hell. She certainly didn’t feel happy. She felt nervous. And sweaty. Regardless, she took her seat and greeted Shinichi. He was pleasant during their pre-show meeting but now he was a star. He was a good choice to host a show like this. He was very charismatic and witty.

“Miyahara-chan, first, I must apologize for making you miss school,” the audience laughed. “We already get enough every time we have Akechi on.”

“That’s probably because he needs all the education he can get.” She hadn’t quite meant it to come out that way, but she was glad it did. The crowd laughed, at least. “Er, sorry, Akechi!” She looked off stage right.

“I didn’t realize you had such strong feelings about the Detective Prince, Miyahara-chan,” Shinichi said. “How did that start?”

“What do you mean? I’m a journalist, he’s a cop,” she joked. “It’s a tale as old as time.”

“Are you saying journalists don’t like cops?”

“I’m saying that cops have access to information I could only dream of, and I am supremely jealous,” Keiko said. “I have nothing but respect for law enforcement.”

“Good clarification,” Shinichi said.   


“I’ve gotta make it, or else my dad will search my room for drugs again,” Keiko laughed. “Oh, morning show, sorry.”

Shinichi’s TV smile remained, though. “I’m just glad you haven’t swore,” he said, earning a small laugh from the audience. “We should get down to business, though. For all the joking around we’ve done, the story you broke yesterday is no laughing matter.” The smile disappeared. “How does a 16-year-old student journalist break such a story?”

Keiko sighed. “I should probably start at the beginning. It’s a long story.”

“A worthy story, though.”

Keiko nodded. “It started a few weeks ago. I actually wrote a story completely unrelated to Kamoshida. About your daughter and another student actually. They both transferred in.”

“Ah, my darling daughter,” he said. “I assume she wasn’t the one causing the trouble?”

“Sumi-chan? She would never,” Keiko said. “She’s the one giving me shi-guff for causing trouble.” Keiko had no idea where the nickname came from but she was dealing with it. She kind of liked this whole ‘being on TV’ thing. “Anyway, no, it wasn’t her. The other student, who starred in that viral video of Kamoshida threatening him and two others with expulsion, he was the one Kamoshida had the problem with. To this day, it still doesn’t really make sense to me. Amamiya is a good kid.”

“Do you have any guesses as to what the problem was?”

“That’s a whole other topic that I can’t get into.” She didn’t  _ want _ to get into it. “Anyway, Kamoshida had leaked his record and then got caught threatening him after someone confronted him for being involved in Shiho Suzui’s suicide. Had I not caught that video, I don’t think any of this ever would have happened.”

“How’d you get the video out so quickly?”

“I actually had help with that,” Keiko said. “From my greatest enemy, actually. Our Student Council President stepped up and got me space on the school’s website to post it. It actually went down a few times from all the shares. I had to call in a favor to keep the website up.” Thank god for Alibaba. 

“Why is the Student Council President your greatest enemy?”

“Oh, she’s joined the good side now,” Keiko said. “It was a major face turn. I didn’t see it coming.” 

“What do you mean?”

“She’s actually my first staffer,” Keiko smiled a genuine smile this time. “I’ve been doing this alone up until this point.”

“You’ve been doing this alone?” His excitement was less for the camera and more genuine this time. “That’s incredible.”

“Anyway, Kamoshida was feeling the squeeze but the same morning that story came out, something else happened.”

“The Phantom Thieves incident,” Shinichi said.

“Correct. I still don’t know much about it, except the whole school thinks  _ I’m _ running around calling myself a Phantom Thief.” The crowd laughed. “It stole a little bit of my thunder, honestly, but it was for the best. Especially these last two days, dealing with everything that comes along with breaking a major story.” She paused. “Kamoshida broke into the gym yesterday. Our principal was giving us a speech on the sanctity of life in light of the previous incident, and Kamoshida just burst through the door, despondent, and confessed to all of his crimes.”

“Including something relating to the mental shutdowns.”

“Yes, including that. I never got more details, though,” Keiko sighed. “He was ushered away by the cops before I could do anything.” She perked up, and she had an idea. “Isn’t your next guest a cop?”

“Well, he’s a detective, but he does work with the police,” Shinichi said. “Should we ask him what he thinks?”

“I’m curious,” Keiko said. “I’d just like to know if there’s a light at the end of the tunnel on these mental shutdown cases. I’m not going to lie and say I’m not concerned.”

“Why would you be worried?”

“My name is now officially attached to a story that mentioned the mental shutdowns. Even if I’m not investigating it, imagine the type of person it would take to perpetrate such a crime. I say perpetrate, because look at the list of victims. Someone  _ always _ has something to gain from it.” Keiko recalled Katsuo Suzuki and Kana Hasegawa.

“It is a particularly ruthless way to go out. But how can you be so sure?” Shinichi sounded fascinated. Keiko had been in his shoes before.

“Katsuo Suzuki and Kana Hasegawa were two mental shutdown cases. Both cases occurred shortly after they tried to go public with sexual assault accusations that we now know to be true.” Keiko gave Shinichi a hard look. “Coincidence? No such thing, in this case.”

“That’s… that’s really quite the deduction,” Shinichi said. “It’s really simple, when you put it that way. But if it makes sense to you, why wouldn’t the police have come up with the same option?”

“I don’t want to answer that question, Yoshizawa-san.” Keiko paused. “It’s a good question, though. Perhaps it’s not as simple as I’m making it sound. I could be spreading baseless conspiracies, which isn’t suitable for TV, I suppose.”

“It’s very thought provoking, though,” Shinichi said. “I have one more question: Do you have thoughts on the Phantom Thieves? Their potential involvement in this case has made waves.”

Keiko laughed. “I’m not entirely sure they exist, if I’m being honest. But it sounds amazing. Stealing hearts? Phenomenal. My inner bookworm is screaming for joy. It’s like something out of a Murakami novel.”

“Do you agree with their, um, hypothetical actions?”

“If we’re to be giving them credit for taking down Kamoshida,” Keiko said, “we should all be thanking them for acting when nobody else was. Whatever they did? It worked. I don’t know much about their methods, so I don’t want to do something crazy like endorse them, but I’m comfortable saying they’re actions are beneficial to society, not a hindrance. Besides, if we’re giving them credit, their actions gave me the story of a lifetime. I might never write a more important story.”

“Well, I think you’re only 16 years old and you’re bound to find yourself here again,” Shinichi said. “We need to get to our next guest but I want to thank you for sharing your story. I have a feeling we will be hearing from you again.”

“Hopefully it’s because I’m a contestant on Japan’s Next Top Idol next time,” Keiko got one final laugh as the show cut to commercial and she exited the stage, right past Akechi. She gave him a big old shit-eating grin. He scowled back. He must not have liked what she had to say. 

‘Good,’ she thought. ‘Fuck Akechi.’

She didn’t stick around long enough to see Akechi bomb his interview, but bomb it he did. Nobody had ever seen the Detective Prince so rattled on stage.

That was a nice bonus to Keiko’s day.

===

_ Lunch _

She arrived at school during the lunch hour having already eaten, which provided her some time to think about what she had done. Not only had she aired pretty much all of the information she’d had on the story on live television, she did it while a cop was the next guest. Keiko couldn’t wait to get home and see how Akechi followed her up. It couldn’t have been easy.

She sat in the renovated broom closet she called her office and reflected briefly until there was a knock at her door.

“Hey,” Makoto was standing there. “Thought I’d find you here.”

“I do spend nearly every waking moment here,” Keiko said, leaning back in her desk chair. 

“How was TV?” It was a loaded question. Makoto wasn’t thrilled with Keiko’s decision to do the show when they last spoke, but she also acknowledged it wasn’t really her place to get upset. 

“I’m a natural, I guess,” Keiko said. “I even made people laugh a few times. Like, with me, not at me. I’m not used to that.”

Makoto gave a small laugh. “You can be funny, when you want to be.”

“Like when I call you sweet cheeks?” Keiko braced as Makoto shot a hair tie she’d had on her wrist at her. It got Keiko in the cheek.

“Don’t push your luck.”

“Damn it.” Keiko laughed. “How are you such a good shot?”

“Dad used to take us shooting sometimes,” Makoto said. “Although, I don’t know what that has to do with rubber band marksmanship.”

“You just have really strong fingers,” Keiko said with a chuckle.

Makoto shot back a shocked look. “Perv!”

“I… actually that time, I wasn’t trying to be a perv.” Keiko said nonchalantly. She really was just speaking without thinking.

“You’re corrupting me.” Makoto sighed. “I recorded Good Morning Japan. Want to come watch it with me after school?”

“Are you inviting me back to your place?” Keiko said with a suggestive wink.

“Invitation rescinded!” Makoto shouted.

“No! Stop!” Keiko said in between hysterical laughs. “I’ll behave!”

There was a beep and Makoto pulled out her phone. “Ah. Duty calls.”

“When my dad says that, it means he has to poop.”

“That’s… not what i meant.”

She left the room, leaving Keiko with a few minutes to herself. She pulled out her phone to find a few texts.

**Kasumi:** Dad told me you killed it on the show

**Kasumi:** thanks for the nickname, btw. 

**Keiko:** Phew. I was so worried.

**Kasumi:** He texted me after and said you were one of the best guests he’d ever had

**Kasumi:** You threw off Akechi-kun so bad

**Keiko:** Dope. He tried to big league me

**Kasumi:** Looking forward to watching it.

Keiko had other texts, as well, although one was an unknown number. She’d look at the ones from Ohya first.

**Ohya:** Shit. Talk about going out in a blaze of glory.

**Keiko:** Decided laying low wouldn’t keep me as safe as going hi profile.

**Ohya:** Makes sense. If you disappear now, there’ll be questions.

**Keiko:** exactly. Now I have too much attention

**Ohya:** don’t let it go to your head

**Keiko:** I’ll try not to. 

The texts from the unknown number turned out to be friendly, this time. Keiko was worried it would be the guy pretending to be Medjed, again.

**Unknown:** Intercepted a whole lot of bullshit today

**Keiko:** Unless Joe Haden magically got my number I’m gonna need to know who you are.

**Unknown:** It’s Alibaba

**Alibaba:** Who the fuck is Joe Haden

**Keiko:** should have guessed. Do I want to know how you got my number?   
****

**Alibaba:** Definitely not.

**Alibaba:** “Medjed” tried contacting you again today

**Keiko:** what’d he say?

**Alibaba:** stupid cryptic bullshit that’s not worth it. I took down Shido’s campaign website in return

**Keiko:** what

**Alibaba:** Ryou’s a big supporter

**Keiko:** so you attacked a prime minister candidate on my behalf

**Alibaba:** Oh. Nah. I was just bored. Figured he’d back off

**Keiko:** you’re going to get me killed.

**Alibaba:** Nah, saw you on TV today. You’ll do that yourself

**Alibaba:** ur really pretty tho. Wyd later

**Keiko:** is this how Makoto feels?   
****

**Alibaba:** It is.

**Keiko:** you could be shooting the shit but are you reading my text messages?

**The number for Alibaba no longer exists.**

Keiko gave a frustrated sigh. 

===

_ After School _

Keiko sat on a couch while Makoto sprawled out on the floor with her study materials before her. To no surprise at all, Makoto couldn’t really handle watching TV and having that be the only activity she was doing. It made sense she was top of the class, Keiko thought. ‘Does she ever take a break?’ 

Keiko wouldn’t have been able to focus had she brought anything with her to study. She supposed she had her notes she could go over again but she was too jarred by seeing herself on TV to sit still. Makoto had noticed her fidgeting, eventually.

“Are you really that nervous to watch it?”

“I don’t know if I made an ass of myself, yet,” Keiko said. “Kasumi said I did a good job, but her dad could have just been being nice.”

Keiko’s part of the show finally came on and they watched it together in silence, except for the occasional giggle from Makoto. Keiko didn’t even know Makoto was capable of giggling. She laughed even harder when Akechi came on screen, visibly nervous, failing to answer any question without rambling nonsense. 

“I can’t believe you bothered him that much!” Makoto was literally holding her gut while laughing. “Sis would love this.”

“She’s friends with Akechi?”

“They’re colleagues.” Makoto sighed. “She works for the SID, and they have a pretty tight relationship with the police detectives. He’s her main contact.”

“That sounds completely unbearable,” Keiko said. “I couldn’t imagine having to deal with that blowhard professionally.”

“She occasionally has complaints,” Makoto said. “But he does good work, I guess. She’s been on a winning streak.”

“Because prosecuting is about wi-” Keiko realized what she was saying. “Sorry, that’s rude.”

“No, there’s something to what you’re saying,” Makoto said. “I think we have a good case study for prosecution not being a good reflection on someone’s character.”

“Amamiya?” Keiko raised an eyebrow and Makoto nodded. “You know, he said something funny the other day. What do you know about Pinochet?”

“The Chilean dictator?”

Keiko nodded. “Of course, you’d know that. He told me about the people that inspired Pinochet’s regime to act never catching blame even though they’re as much to blame for a genocide as anyone else.” She left out Ren’s economics lecture that followed. “He then said that maybe our reporting inspired the Phantom Thieves to act.”

“So, in that roundabout way, we’re partially guilty for the Phantom Thieves incident?”

“Yes,” Keiko said. “But there’s another domino that fell before I ever reported the initial story. Do I even bother reporting on Kamoshida if Ren doesn’t get on his bad side?”

“You were as much on Kamoshida’s bad side as Amamiya was, though,” Makoto said. 

“ _ Because of Amamiya _ ,” Keiko said. She sighed. “Sorry, I’m just paranoid, is all.”

Makoto laughed. “I’ll help you make a tin foil hat.”

“It just bothered me when he said that,” Keiko said. “I’m not comfortable with this.”

“What bothers you?” She hadn’t really looked up from her homework until now.

“I don’t like having an adversary.” Keiko had started chewing on her fingernails, which weren’t quite to their nail beds yet, but would be within an hour of her keeping it up. “My job is to report what happens, but ‘what happens’ is something that might get me killed.”

Makoto got up from the floor and sat next to her on the couch. Keiko didn’t remember leaning her head on Makoto’s shoulder, but that’s where it ended up.

“Did I tell you about that dream I had? The night after I met Ohya?”

“You told me you don’t remember much of it, just that you were terrified.” 

“That was a lie.” Keiko took a deep breath. “I remember every second of it.”

Makoto started rubbing her back in an attempt to calm Keiko’s anxiety. She had remembered her sister doing the same for her after her father had died. 

“I think I survived a mental shutdown.”

Keiko described the dream and the brief amount of time when she couldn’t remember her name. She described the outfit of her attacker, and the voice. Height, approximate weight, hair color…

“Do you really think it was Akechi?”

“No.” Keiko said. “I don’t. I think that’s too wild of an accusation to throw around.”

“He seemed awfully spooked on TV.” Makoto said, sounding convinced. “But you did unveil new information.”

“I think he knows more than he’s letting on. And I think the police have something to gain by covering this up.”

“Why?”

“I’m not arrogant enough to think I’m some prodigy,” Keiko’s voice broke but she regained composure quickly. “If I’ve figured all this out, someone else has, too. We don’t know the bodycount from these incidents.”

“Are you worried they’ll go after you again?”

“I can’t just live in constant fear,” Keiko said. “But yes.” She looked at the clock. “I need to get heading home. It’s getting late and my parents will want to gush over me.”

===

Keiko decided she wasn’t really in a state to do something like check her emails after her parents spent the whole night praising her like they’d been supportive of her career choice the whole time. It was like they never, ever argued with her that her job wasn’t as important as she thought it was.

She humored them, though. It was nice to play pretend, like she had a happy home life with supportive parents. They were probably just trying to butter her up in case she ever got rich. Jokes on them, Keiko thought, journalists never get rich. 

She didn’t touch her computer that night. She only checked her texts. All she had was a text from Ren. 

**Ren:** Sojiro said he saw you on TV today

**Ren:** when you didn’t stop by, he said you probably got a big head

**Keiko:** He’s right, I’m far too famous to be hanging out with an old geezer and a criminal

**Ren:** wouldn’t guess that

**Ren:** did your dad really search your room for drugs?

**Keiko:** I drank too much coffee once and he thought I was on adderall

**Ren:** Oh. That’s not nearly as cool

**Keiko:** he didn’t find my cocaine

She put her phone down, deciding she could get some entertainment by letting Ren guess whether or not she was joking for a while. Keiko laid in her bed and fell asleep more quickly than usual, exhausted from the day’s events.

===

_ Wednesday, May 4th, Early Morning _

Keiko walked to LeBlanc earlier than she knew Sojiro ever opened but she couldn’t sit at home much longer. Maybe if she knocked on the door, Ren would be awake and let her in. She hadn’t slept well that night.

Akechi haunted her dreams. She didn’t remember the contents of the dream, only that he was there and that he was furious. She was probably projecting her fears onto him. As much as she enjoyed treating him like the sycophant he is, she supposed she didn’t know him well enough to put him in his place. And being a detective, he definitely had more power than she was comfortable going against. She was only a 16-year-old student journalist that just badmouthed the police on live television.

‘I might be in over my head,’ she thought. ‘Might as well keep digging deeper.’

Ren was sitting at the counter reading a book when she got there. The sign still said “closed” but he noticed he had company staring at him. He laughed and waved her off like he wanted her to go away, but then he got up and let her in. The bell chimed, and he went back to his book.

“It’s too early,” he said. “You should be sleeping.”

“Couldn’t,” Keiko said with a yawn. “Nightmares again.”

“Can’t say I blame you,” Ren said flatly and stuck his nose back in his book.

“I’m-” Keiko paused. She felt terrible about Ren’s name coming up during her interview. “I’m sorry I brought you up during the interview.”

“What?” He put down his book. “You defended me on  _ national tv. _ My mom actually spoke to me for the first time in literal months.”

It was Keiko’s turn to shoot him a look. “Your mom hadn’t talked to you since you left?”

“I haven’t heard a word from anybody.” Ren’s voice was full of  _ something _ Keiko couldn’t quite read. “I’m doing better here, though. I don’t think any of my friends back home would have defended me like you did.”

“That’s shitty,” she said. “I didn’t know how rough things were.”

“I’m not exactly open about it,” he replied. “I’d rather listen to others. I let my problems be secondary.”

“That’s unhealthy.”

“Careful throwing stones from your glass house there, Keiko.” Ren stood up and went behind the counter. “Sojiro’s been teaching me how to make the perfect cup of coffee. Care to be my guinea pig?”

“Speaking of things that are unhealthy…” Keiko pondered. “Sure. But if I die, pretend it was a mental shutdown.”

“That’s dark,” Ren laughed. 

“I cope through humor,” Keiko said. 

The bell chimed as Ren slid Keiko her coffee, which wasn’t poisoned and was actually quite good. Sojiro walked in.

“Great, now the kid is opening the shop without me,” Sojiro said. “Pretty soon, I’m going to be out of a job. You remembered to charge her double, right?”

“You’d charge somebody double to try my coffee?” Ren gave an incredulous look. “I’m ‘a novice,’ in your own words.”

“Only her,” Sojiro replied. “If I don’t charge her double, she might keep coming back.”

“I see how this place treats royalty,” Keiko said with a fake scoff. “I shall take my business elsewhere.”

“You don’t even pay,” Ren said, dumbfounded.

“I pay you in my company,” Keiko said.

“God, kid, you’re on TV one time!” Sojiro mocked. “You did good, though.” He gave a proud smile. “You really threw that detective kid for a loop, too.”

“You should know how important this is,” Ren said. “Sojiro never watches those daytime shows.”

“Shut it, kid,” Sojiro said. “Her head’s big enough as it is.”

“Your praise has caused my ego to soar to new heights,” Keiko said with a fake royal accent. “I shall henceforth be known as The Artist Formerly Known as Keiko.”

“That’s a bit much.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Joe Haden- Plays for American football team the Pittsburgh Steelers. I've been watching a lot of football lately. 
> 
> Keiko hates Akechi almost as much as I do, and it's great. Writing Akechi as an adversary without the supernatural aspects of the story is a massive challenge. 
> 
> I really busted through this chapter. I didn't expect to have it done on time and I actually had it done a day ahead of time, so I'm pretty proud of that. Even with all the extra work I've been picking up lately, I was able to get this done. 
> 
> Thanks for reading, and please let me know what you think.


	4. "Sus"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Recording- Some people have a fear, and justifiably so, that when they're recorded, they'll end up having their voice on the radio at some point. It's a viable fear and I've had it happen to me multiple times. It's worse for other people when that happens than it is for me, because I'm pretty sure my voice is annoying as hell.

_ Friday, May 6, Lunch _

There wasn’t a single person in the history of Shujin Academy that Keiko hated more than Sadayo Kawakami. At least, that was the case at this very second. She was ranked just below Kamoshida and that one kid that flicked a booger in her hair when she was a first year (‘It was so god damn sticky and oh my god, I think I’m going to gag’). 

Keiko went to leave her classroom when the young teacher stopped her from making it much further than the stairs heading down towards the courtyard. 

“Keiko, do you have a minute?” ‘No, I don’t have a minute. Now go away and let me enjoy my leftovers in peace.’ Sojiro had sent her home from LeBlanc with some leftover curry from the day’s batch and while she was hesitant to eat it cold, it couldn’t possibly be worse for her than the rotation of vending machine sandwiches she lived on. 

Keiko bit her tongue, though, and answered Kawakami as respectfully as she could muster. Maybe Kawakami would let her eat while she was getting lectured for whatever she did. “Yes, ma’am. What’s up?”

“We should head to my room,” Kawakami said, gesturing down the hall. Keiko followed and the two entered the empty classroom. The teacher closed and locked the door. “Have you talked to Niijima yet?”

“No, but you could have just told me to find her instead of dragging me away from my lunch- er-,” Keiko stammered. “Sorry. I didn’t get breakfast. I’m more than a little grouchy.”

“You can eat here, if you want,” the teacher said. “I rarely have time to eat.”

Keiko had enough curry to reasonably feed two people and she had zero reason to pig out. “Want some?” She held her bowl, which she’d fished out of her bag, out to the teacher. “I don’t mind sharing.”

“I didn’t call you in here to steal your lunch-”

“Just my lunch break,” Keiko said, but she laughed at her own joke. “Have some. There’s more than enough.”

Kawakami pulled a plastic fork out of her bag and crossed the desk, sitting next to Keiko instead of across. She took a bite. “Wow!”

“Right? I’ll tell the old timer you like it.” Keiko looked at the clock on the wall and realized they still had plenty of time before the bell rang. Time moved more slowly than she preferred. “LeBlanc in Yongen-Jaya. The old man that runs it is the transfer’s guardian.”

“Amamiya-kun?” Kawakami questioned and Keiko nodded. “At least he’s getting fed, then.” Her expression took a somber turn. “The whole school owes that kid one big apology.” 

“Already gave him mine,” Keiko said. “He’s pretty misunderstood.”

“Do you think he actually assaulted somebody?”

“If he did, they deserved it.” Keiko took another bite. “Doesn’t seem the violent type.”

Kawakami gave a small laugh. “I saw that on TV.”

Keiko blushed a little. “Everyone saw that, didn’t they?”

“A Shujin student was on TV and looked like a million bucks. Like that would get ignored.” Keiko started to thank her but Kawakami waved her off. “We’re just as bad as the rumor mill. I call you in here for something important and we just get way off subject.” Kawakami just looked exhausted most times, but Keiko thought she was pretty right now. She seemed to have let her guard down.

“It happens,” Keiko said. “It’s better than eating alone.” They ate in silence for a couple minutes before Kawakami started talking about what she actually needed from Keiko.

“I called you in because Kobayakawa is going to ask Makoto to investigate the Phantom Thieves incident today, and in turn, you.”

Keiko winced. “That’s not great. Why am I even a suspect?”

“Do I really have to explain why you’re a suspect?” Kawakami rolled her eyes. “They still want you expelled whenever you write anything relating to Kamoshida.”

“Have you told them to stop fucking up and I won’t write about them fucking up?”

“Language!” Kawakami scolded. “But I have, actually.” She sighed. “Chouno and I both keep bringing up how we no longer feel safe knowing what was going on under our noses.”

Keiko raised an eyebrow. “Want to go on record with that?”

Kawakami looked at her hard, but it had the effect of looking like she was staring right through Keiko instead. “I’ll think about it.”

“I expected a flat-out no, so I take this as a win.” The bell rang signifying the end of lunch, so Keiko packed up the rest of her lunch.

“Keiko, I need to know,” Kawakami asked with some trepidation. “Are you involved in anything to do with those calling cards?”

She shrugged. “I have no clue about any of them. As far as I know, it was just a prank.”

“Good lie.” Kawakami wouldn’t believe that for a second. The evidence for Keiko’s involvement was pretty overbearing. If Keiko had been an onlooker, she herself would have presumed her own guilt.   
She shrugged again. “Not a lie.”

_ === _

_ After School _

Keiko was thoroughly sick of her 15 minutes of fame within a half hour of leaving LeBlanc on Wednesday morning. Life hadn’t gotten easier in the meantime. She’d rejected many other TV appearances because of some combination of not wanting to do them or not having the time to. School wasn’t much of an escape because her thorough rejection of her being a Phantom Thief only provided additional fuel to the rumor mill.

_ Nobody would reject their involvement so strongly if they weren’t involved. _

It would have been nice if that statement came from a student. Instead, it was something that Mr. Inui said in class, specifically a class in which she was sitting in. He looked guilty when she raised her hand and asked him what that was supposed to mean.

“It’s really cool that my teacher is spreading rumors about me in classes that don’t involve me,” Keiko had run into Ren after that class and told him that. He laughed and told her she’s just lucky she’s not a guy, because Ushimaru warns every girl and woman in the school that he’s a predator.

That was way more inappropriate, and caused Keiko to be at least a little grateful that the form of criminality they were forcing on her was less tangible. This whole school was in desperate need for a collective change of heart. 

Keiko didn’t have much on the controversial side of things for the school paper. Her content had already filled out for the week because of the last school board meeting and for the first time ever, she’d had the whole paper designed and ready to go by Thursday. 

She took great pride in her ability to reverse-jinx herself: As long as no major news broke over the next couple of days, she’d have an actual, literal day off. She practically skipped out of the school gate when Makoto grabbed her arm and dragged her into the alley. 

“We need to talk.” Makoto spoke in a hushed tone, like she was scared somebody would hear her.

“A dark alley makes it seem like you’re part of some conspiracy.” Keiko assumed Makoto didn’t know about Kawakami’s warning. Makoto gave her a stern look and looked like she was about to talk when Keiko interrupted her. “Let’s head somewhere else. We can hide in plain sight in Shibuya.”

Makoto agreed and they took the train, then walked to Central Street. It was always so crowded on the street but Big Bang Burger was quiet enough this time of day to have a conversation, but loud enough that nobody could eavesdrop. Plus Keiko was fiending for a burger.

They sat and Makoto spilled the beans on Kobayakawa’s request. She must have expected some kind of panic from Keiko, but she’d already had the last few hours to process her grief and considering the first thing Makoto did was pull her aside to tell her exactly what was going on in more detail than Keiko wanted, she wasn’t upset.

Keiko quirked an eyebrow. “He seriously called him ‘Kamoshida-kun?’”

“That’s what you take away from this?” Makoto often found Keiko’s lack of tact offensive but acceptable, but this was a nonchalance she didn’t like from her friend.

“I’m just saying, the honorific kind of makes him sound like a child in trouble for spilling a glass of milk.” Keiko sighed. “It’s just a weird thing to call a literal rapist.”

Makoto made a loud noise that was something like “ugh!” and “grr!” at the same time and Keiko really wanted to analyze it but she decided against it. 

“I think I know better than anyone that you’re capable.” What bothered her most was the fact that it was yet another thing taking Makoto away from helping at the paper. Keiko had really come to rely on her.

“I appreciate your faith,” Makoto said. “But is this really something I should be bothering with?”

Keiko shrugged. She’d chased the Phantom Thieves a little bit but the trail quickly turned cold. It was most likely a very well-done prank done by one of the many people that Kamoshida had wronged. It really could have been anyone: It turns out there weren’t many people at Shujin not holding a grudge against him. Kawakami and Chouno’s testimony during the last school board meeting was the final nail in the coffin forcing the Shujin school board to denounce and condemn the man’s behavior. They hadn’t gone into as much depth as Keiko would have preferred but it seemed as though there were many veiled references to past events. 

It was incredible how much it took for the school board to act like decent human beings.

“It certainly feels to me like a waste of time.” Keiko sighed. “ It’s weird how much the Phantom Thieves spooked Kobayakawa.”

Makoto nodded. “He was, somehow, sweatier than usual today.”

Keiko made a gagging noise, mostly for show. “That’s not possible, but thank you for the image. I imagine him swimming in a literal puddle of his own sweat.”

“Now I’m imagining him in a bathing suit.” Makoto matched the noise.

Keiko bowed like she was apologizing for the death of a relative. “My sincerest apologies. I hope you will still remain my friend.” 

Makoto laughed but after a short time her face turned serious. “I wonder why he’s having me investigate. If he were truly scared, he’d go to the police.”

===

_ Saturday, May 7, After School _

“Keiko, do you have a minute?” She had several minutes. Keiko only stopped by the newspaper office to pick up a flash drive she’d forgotten at school on Thursday and forgot to pick back up on Friday. It was Miss Kawakami knocking on the door.

“I do.” Keiko hoped the trepidation didn’t show in her voice. Somewhere deep in her soul, she felt her lifelong streak of successful reverse-jinxes hanging in the balance. Against her better judgment, she opened the door and let the teacher in.

“I don’t know why I thought this room would be bigger,” Kawakami looked around at the windowless room with grey walls lit by a single fluorescent light bulb. 

“It’s the best the school could do,” Keiko said in a mocking voice. “I bet they wish they’d done even less. Jokes on them, I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t even be possible to do less.”

“Yeah…” Kawakami gave a guilty look. “I won’t pretend I went to bat for you. But you’ve been doing good work, and I should have.”

Keiko shrugged. “You do the best you can with what you have. I can’t pretend I’d have reported on Kamoshida without the whole slew of bullshit that fell in my lap before it.”

“Lang-”

Keiko made a show of saying “You have no power here.”

“I-” Kawakami laughed. “Fine.”

“It’s not a real newsroom if you don’t swear.”

“I’d say this is more of a news closet.”

“Huh, no wonder I have such a hard time leaving.”

“What was th-” Kawakami sighed. “You know what? Nevermind.”

“Anyway, you obviously didn’t come here to shoot the shit.” Keiko raised an eyebrow. “What’s up?

“Can’t a teacher check in on one of her students?”

“Given you don’t have me for…” she made a show of going through some papers on her desk, “literally any classes, it’s just a tad sus.”

“Right. I could see how that’s,” Kawakami stopped for a second. “Sus?”

“Like, suspect.” Keiko shook her head. “Come on! You’re not that old.”

“I can’t keep up with you kids,” Kawakami sighed.

“You’re what, 30?” Keiko grinned. She knew Kawakami wasn’t 30.

The teacher looked shocked. “I’m 25!”

“Old.” Keiko turned up her nose. “I have no use for somebody so withered.”

Kawakami made a ‘hmph’ noise and crossed her arms. “Fine. I guess I  _ won’t _ offer to do an interview with you.”

“Wait! Shit.” It was Keiko’s turn to sigh. “Sorry. I’ll stop.”

“You should be careful who you start giving shit to.” Judging by Kawakami’s smile, Keiko was pretty sure she wasn’t taking all that much offense to the quips. 

“I’m just glad you started using proper newsroom etiquette.” Keiko shifted gears before Kawakami could renege on her offer. “You have time for an interview right now?”

“I do. I don’t work my other job until later tonight, so I’ve got a couple hours to kill.” 

“Other job?”

“Don’t ask. Please.” Kawakami spoke faster than her normal cadence. “Just, uh, we should do the interview somewhere else. Somewhere that’s not here.”

“That’s a good idea.” Keiko looked around the glorified closet. “You aren’t the only one that doesn’t feel safe in this school. Erm. I don’t really feel safe anywhere, though.”

“You’re too young to be this anxious.”

“I’m more paranoid than anxious.” Keiko finished filling her bag with the things she wanted to take home and zipped it up. “Let’s go get some curry. I have to thank Sojiro for giving me the leftovers anyway.”

They left the school and headed towards the train station. It turned out that Kawakami took the train to school every day, too. ‘That’s more than a bit depressing,’ Keiko thought. She always assumed people with full time jobs could afford cars.

===

It was the prime rush-hour for the train systems so they weren’t able to even stand near each other, with Keiko settling in a spot closer to the door and Kawakami ending up somewhere near the middle, an uncomfortable look on her face like she was trying very hard to look as un-grope-able as possible. 

That’d been an issue in Tokyo lately that Keiko was glad she didn’t have. She supposed she could have passed for a small boy with longer-than-usual-but-not-long-for-a-girl hair if she had to, which meant most old pervs weren’t interested in her. 

They were able to meet back up at the Shibuya Station. Kawakami seemed to be in a hurry to get out of there and ushered them onto the separate platform that would take them to Keiko’s neighborhood. This train was much less crowded, giving them the opportunity to sit next to each other.

“You really don’t like Shibuya,” Keiko said flatly. 

“Too many people,” Kawakami said calmly. “I’ve lived in the city my whole life but Shibuya station at rush hour will always be nerve wracking.”

“Think you’d be used to it by now,” Keiko sighed. “I get it, though. I’m starting to dislike crowded places. The more people around, the better chance I get recognized.”

Kawakami gave her a look.

“Has that been a problem?”

“Ever since I did that stupid TV show.” Keiko laughed. “An actual, professional reporter reached out after the Kamoshida story and told me if I ever did TV they’d be fawning over me like I was The Detective Prince.”

“I could see that happening,” Kawakami said. “Cute as a button and you certainly had Akechi’s number.”

“Don’t you start,” Keiko warned. “Sojiro already thinks I’m getting a big head.” Kawakami gave her a questioning look. “Oh, that’s the guy that owns the cafe. You ate his curry earlier.”

“Amamiya’s guardian?” She had a worried look on her face briefly but it went away quickly. “Will Ren-kun be there?”

“I doubt it.” Keiko stood up and grabbed her bag off the ground. “He works like, five jobs. I’m surprised you haven’t run into him at one of them.”

“I’m not,” Kawakami replied flatly. “I don’t have much time for anything outside of my jobs.”

“No clue how you juggle that.” They walked through the backstreets of Yongen-Jaya a bit. Kawakami was taking her time looking at everything around her. There were a lot of cats out and about today, for some reason. The old man that owned the second-hand store was shoe’ing a couple out of his shop. 

‘Poor kitties,’ Keiko thought. There’d been a lot more strays roaming the streets lately. They took the right-hand turn down the alleyway and entered LeBlanc, the familiar chime alerting Sojiro to their presence.

“Oh, you’re back,” he looked up from the cup of coffee he was making.

Keiko took a seat in a booth, with Kawakami sliding in across from here. She preferred sitting at the bar but booths were better for interviews. It didn’t help that there was a man incessantly interrupting Sojiro’s concentration every few seconds. She could read the irritation on Sojiro’s face. “I thought you only said that to Ren.”

Sojiro shrugged. “You’re here more often than he is.” He glanced at Kawakami then back at Keiko. Then he looked at Kawakami again. “Oh! You’re the kid’s teacher, right?”

“Huh?” Kawakami was lost in thought. “Right, sorry. I was distracted.”

Sojiro laughed at the exhausted teacher. “You must be a good fit. The kid’s always staring off into space, too. Sometimes I have no idea if he’s listening.”

“He doesn’t miss a thing,” Kawakami confirmed. “Every time I think I catch him off guard, I end up looking like an idiot.”

The man that had been interrupting Sojiro over and over again had given rapt attention to the TV and hadn’t been paying attention to their conversation. Unfortunately for everyone else in the room, the segment on TV had ended, so he decided everyone needed to hear his thoughts. Had Keiko been paying attention, he blood would have been boiling: Akechi had done another guest spot on a different show, one that wasn’t hosted by Shinichi Yoshizawa. 

She had no way of knowing what Akechi was talking about but given the Phantom Thieves case was a bit of a golden goose for him, he was probably discussing that.

“I don’t know what we’d do without Akechi-kun,” the man said dreamily. “It’s a shame the rest of your generation,” he said, directly addressing Keiko, “doesn’t seem to share the same sense of justice.”

Keiko didn’t reply, instead opting to laugh awkwardly and wish for some sort of miracle, like an aneurysm that would take her life painlessly or even a mental shutdown. 

Kawakami took offense to his boomer-ish generation shaming. “As someone who actually works with children, that same attitude you’re taking is why the world will be a better place when they’re in charge.” She upturned her nose.

Sojiro looked like he was about to say something but he stopped short when Kawakami shot him a look. 

“I can’t believe I’m getting talked down to by a couple millennials.”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “Uh, I haven’t even said anything yet, my guy.”

“She’s not even a millennial,” Kawakami said. “If you’re going to be ageist, at least figure out what your own shitty words mean.”

The man made a “hmph” noise and looked at Sojiro, who provided no sympathy. Then he looked back at Keiko, his expression changing. “I know you.” He pointed at her. “You’re that delinquent who embarrassed Akechi-kun on national TV!”

“Okay, Phoenix Wright, you got me.” Keiko laughed, mostly at her own joke. “I’d say he embarrassed himself. It’s not my fault he couldn’t handle minor disagreements.”

“If this is how customers get spoken to,” he looked at Sojiro. “I’ll just leave.”

Sojiro pointed at the door. “I’ve been trying to get you to leave for hours!” 

The man stormed out.

Kawakami scoffed. “What a dick.”

“Fuck that guy.” Keiko slouched back in the booth and sighed. “Should we get down to business?”

“We should,” Kawakami said. She’d sat back up straighter. She’d slouched down after the guy left as if trying to get rid of some tension. Keiko couldn’t get over how much older she looked right now. That argument took a lot out of her. Sojiro set a cup of coffee she’d ordered before the argument in front of her. Hopefully that would help. 

Keiko placed her phone on the table and hit record. “I’m the only person that ever hears this record, for the record. You don’t have to worry about getting put on the radio or anything.” Kawakami nodded and Keiko started with her first question. “You spoke briefly at the last school board meeting. What brought that on?”

“It was the right thing to do.” Kawakami laughed softly. “Sorry. That’s a lame answer.”

“No. It’s refreshing coming from any of the faculty at this school.”

She nodded, and continued. “I became absorbed in just trying to make it through a day. I don’t think any of us  _ knew _ -knew what was happening, you know? Like, we weren’t asking questions. Nobody was ever allowed to sit in on practice. But did we notice students with more bruises than usual? Absolutely.”

“Did you notice anything different with Suzui?”

“I wouldn’t be the person to ask. I never had her in class and I don’t know if I ever talked to her more than a couple of times.” Keiko could tell that it weighed on Kawakami. “I’m sure if I had been paying better attention, I could have done something, but I don’t… well. As somebody who’s been in- a similar situation, I don’t think I would appreciate somebody thinking they’d be my savior.”

“I’m not going to pry any further on that,” Keiko spoke cautiously. “What about Kamoshida?”

She spoke more assuredly this time. “I’m not going to pretend I ever liked him but I didn’t dislike him. He’s the stereotypical jock, that’s what I always thought. Everything’s a competition. That’s why I thought the track team had to go away.” She paused. “I feel bad for Sakamoto. Putting myself into the shoes of a child, getting goaded by an adult I’m supposed to be able to trust is fu- is a nightmare.”

“Did he ever impose himself on the staff?”

Kawakami gave a small, sad smile. “I think we’re too old for him.”

Keiko couldn’t hold back a laugh. “Sorry.”

“He never sexually harassed me, at least.” Kawakami spoke more seriously. “I do legitimately think we were too old for him. He definitely tried and succeeded in intimidating us, though. I’m not a large person. Neither are Chouno and Usami, and I don’t think any of the men really took issue with Kamoshida. I think that’s part of why I feel the need to speak up. Not only was Kamoshida getting away with beating and sexually assaulting students, we had staff members that potentially knew what was happening and did nothing. I have one of those cringy quotes I put on the board whenever I have a particularly, erm, rambunctious class. ‘Evil succeeds when good men do nothing.’ Something like that.”

“They did nothing?”

“I don’t know who knew what.” Kawakami looked thoughtful, Keiko thought. “I also don’t want to throw accusations around without cause. I don’t think this is being taken as seriously by the faculty as it is by students.”

“What should be done?”

Kawakami took a few thoughtful seconds. “I think we ultimately need to know where the school’s administration stands. We’ve gotten the school board to condemn his behavior but we still have radio silence from Kobayakawa. Today, he asked a student to investigate the Phantom Thieves incident, as though they were guilty for Kamoshida’s crimes.”

“Can we really go on record with that?” Keiko wasn’t sure she wanted that reported in a story just yet. 

“There’s nothing legally binding by what he did. If Niijima didn’t sign an NDA, she can do and say whatever she wants, too.” Kawakami sighed. “I know you two are friends.”

“Actually, I despised her until like, a month ago.”

“Regardless, teenage girls all hate each other.” Kawakami laughed. “I have a million stories about my high school days, if you ever want to hear how deep of a truth that is.”

Sojiro laughed from behind the counter. He must’ve been eavesdropping. 

“But you’re comfortable airing that Kobayakawa tried to open an investigation on the Phantom Thieves?”

“Sure am.” Kawakami folded her arms and smiled. “It’s time for something to change around here.”

They wrapped up the interview and Keiko left. Kawakami stayed behind to talk with Sojiro, who was more than happy to chat up a pretty girl that wasn’t in high school.

===

She walked in the front door and confirmed that her mom and dad weren’t home. It was a Friday night, so there was a strong chance they’d be out with work friends trying to forget this last week had ever happened.

Keiko wasn’t pro-alcoholism or anything, but she wouldn’t say that she didn’t understand why people did that. ‘If I was of age, I’d be doing it.’

Regardless, her parents not being home would only work in their favor. It was probably a good time to invite Makoto to come over and if her mother was there, not only would they not get any of the work done that Keiko was planning, Keiko’s mother would go out of her way to embarrass her to high heaven with baby photos. It was practically a holiday in the Miyahara household whenever Keiko made a friend.

She laid down on her bed pulling out her phone to send a message to Makoto, who confirmed that she could come over with a message that said “Thaaaaaank you” followed by one of those emojis that had the eyes crossed out. She must’ve been having about as much fun as Keiko had been having.

And now she’d have to go in and redesign a page after school. She dozed briefly until Makoto texted her that she was getting off the train. Keiko sent her the address and went downstairs and waited by the door until the doorbell rang. 

Keiko didn’t know why she thought Makoto would dress business casual when she wasn’t wearing a school uniform but she didn’t expect to see their student council president dressed in sweatpants and a ratty t-shirt.

“What?” Makoto glared at her host as she was let in. 

“Ah. I’m staring.” ‘Great. Good start to this.’ Keiko turned around and looked at her friend. “Sorry for staring. I just didn’t realize you owned any clothes that weren’t business casual.”

“What do you think I wear at home?!” Makoto narrowed her eyes. “I’m not some robot who only studies and runs the student council.”

Keiko provided a shit-eating grin. “Beep boop.” Makoto gave a frustrated noise as the two made their way upstairs into Keiko’s room. They could have hung out downstairs, Keiko thought, but it was safer to hang out upstairs. She didn’t want to risk her parents coming home and accosting Makoto all night. They still had class in the morning.

Makoto took a seat on Keiko’s desk chair and Keiko suddenly felt self conscious about how sparse her room was. The walls were bare and there wasn’t much in the way of furniture beyond the rocking chair she used as a desk chair. There was another chair somewhere across the room next to her dresser, but it had so much junk piled up on it that Keiko hadn’t actually seen it in years. Keiko opted to sit on her bed.

She was curious what had Makoto so excited to get out of the house. “What were you up to?”

Makoto must not have been in the best mood: Keiko could have written a month’s worth of stories out of the sigh that followed the question.

“Sae was supposed to take me out for sushi tonight.” She leaned back in the computer chair and had to adjust herself when the minor movement made the chair rock. “Then I found out she invited Akechi-kun. It was supposed to just be the two of us.”

Keiko raised an eyebrow. “Your sister is that close with him?”

Makoto nodded. “They work together a lot.”

“Isn’t a prosecutor working closely with a detective kind of sus?”

“Sus?” Makoto showed visible confusion.

“Fucking old people. Suspect.” Keiko grunted. “It means suspect.”

“Oh. Sorry. I’m not up on all the slang.” Makoto looked a tad embarrassed. “You weren’t wrong when you said I need to expand my horizons.”

Keiko laughed. “That was mostly just to get you to become more accepting of my inappropriate comments.”

“So, you were gaslighting me?” Keiko didn’t like the fact that Makoto looked like she just might throw a punch. 

Keiko stammered. “In the friendliest way possible, yes.” 

Then Makoto laughed and Keiko felt stupid. “Anyway, what’re we doing?”   
Keiko explained the conversation she had with Kawakami. “Kawakami implied that you should go public with what Kabayokawa asked you to do.”

Makoto pondered the words for a second. “Wouldn’t that be a bit antagonistic?”

Keiko nodded. “Especially considering he asked you to investigate me. That would mean come Monday morning, he’d know you can’t be trusted.”

“But I’m assuming you wouldn’t ask me to do this if you didn’t have a plan.”

Again, Keiko nodded, and had a small, crooked smile. “You know me way too well for someone who wasn’t my friend until a month ago.”

“You’ve always been a schemer.”

“Facts,” Keiko said. “I’m not going to tell you what to say, because that’s an ethical problem. We’re already kind of brushing against some rules given our friendship. But I want you to tell me what happened with Kobayakawa and how it made you feel, and if you’re going to go through with the investigation.”

“Simple enough,” Makoto said. 

“I also think that we should be doing our own investigation into the Phantom Thieves.”

“I thought you said it was a prank.” Makoto raised an eyebrow.

“I’ve changed my mind.” She thought back to her conversation with Kawakami and just how shameless Kobayakawa was being with all of this. “I still don’t know if they’re real, but Kobayakawa wouldn’t be this much of a mess over it if they weren’t.”

“I agree.”

“And we’re going to do this investigation the right way.” Keiko pulled a folder from out of her bag. “We’re going to be open and transparent with what we find as we go. If something like this is happening in the school, the students and parents deserve to know.”

“You want to take down the Phantom Thieves?”

“Take them down?” Keiko laughed. “I have no intention of doing that. I just want the story.”

“...can we do something normal now?” Makoto asked with some trepidation. “Like, screw around on the internet or watch a movie. I feel like all this is going to drive both of us insane.”

Keiko hesitated. She wasn’t planning to relax tonight but Makoto did have a point. “Sure. You pick the movie.”

Keiko discovered a secret side to Makoto that night.

===

_ Monday, May 9, Early Morning _

**Faculty, Niijima confirm Phantom Thieves Investigation**

_ Miss Kawakami and Student Council President Makoto Niijima have both come forward to confirm that Principal Kobayakawa has opened an investigation into the Phantom Thieves incident. _

_ Kawakami came forward concerned that an investigation was opened on the Phantom Thieves, believed by her and most of the staff to be just a prank by one of many students who had issues with Suguru Kamoshida beyond his crimes, before an investigation on Kamoshida’s crimes was opened. _

_ “Not only was Kamoshida getting away with beating and sexually assaulting students, we had staff members that potentially knew what was happening and did nothing,” Kawakami said. “I don’t want to throw accusations around without cause, but I don’t think this is being taken as seriously by the faculty as it is by students.” _

_ Kawakami said she’s unsure where the school’s administration stands. While they have condemned Kamoshida’s actions, they have yet to open an investigation on the circumstances surrounding the situation. _

_ She confirmed, however, that they have asked Niijima to open her own investigation of the Phantom Thieves, presumed to be Shujin students with an axe to grind against Kamoshida. _

_ Niijima confirmed Friday to the Gazette that she had indeed been asked to open an investigation by Principal Kobayakawa. _

_ “I was honest with him when I told him I didn’t have time,” Niijima said. “He then threatened to rescind any chance I had for a letter of recommendation. I don’t know if anyone realizes how insulting that is to me.” _

_ Niijima then went on the rant about how hard she works to keep her straight A’s for three straight hours, and it was a total bore  _

_ Niijima said that any investigation of the Phantom Thieves will have to take place through the student newspaper and will be done with the utmost transparency to the student body. She intends to commence this investigation herself in the coming weeks but not at the behest of school administration. _

_ “If they want an investigation, they can hire a private investigator or an auditing team,” Niijima said. “But it’s absolutely insulting to those who faced the brunt of Kamoshida’s abuse to have an investigation opened on the group that allegedly took him down before investigating his abuses.” _

_ Kawakami said it’s a shame that the staff hadn’t been paying more attention and that includes herself. She said there was ill-will towards Kamoshida among the women in the staff but they assumed he was just a stereotypical jock. _

_ “I’m not going to pretend I ever liked him but I didn’t dislike him,” Kawakami said. “He’s the stereotypical jock. That’s always what I thought. Everything’s a competition. That’s why, I thought, the track team had to go away.” _

_ She expressed regret at how hard the school staff turned against Ryuji Sakamoto, a second-year who has largely worn the blame for the disbanding of the track team. _

_ “Putting myself into the shoes of a child, getting goaded by an adult I’m supposed to be able to trust is a nightmare,” Kawakami said.  _

_ When asked if Kamoshida ever imposed himself on any of the staff, she said they were all too old for him.  _

_ “I do legitimately think we were too old for him,” Kawakami said. “He definitely tried and succeeded in intimidating us, though. I’m not a large person. Neither are Chouno and Usami.” _

_ Anyone with information on the Phantom Thieves should reach out to Niijima, who can be found in the Student Council room after school most days. Informants can also bring information to the closet that houses the Shujin Academy Gazette. _

_ Principal Kobayakawa did not reply to request for comment. _

Keiko laughed. She’d never had the door slammed in her face so quickly. 

She briefly passed Kawakami in the hallway, who gave her a thumbs up and a smile. That reassured Keiko. It’s always concerning when a story like that gets published. Angering a source isn’t fun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Work has been absolutely insane lately so my free time is mostly spent trying to recover from crazy long days. Updates are stopping, but they will slow for the next couple of weeks. My plan is to build up a reserve of chapters that I can post in case I don't have time to write.
> 
> This story, in particular, will still be getting updated weekly because it's not nearly as time consuming to write as Trust Me, I Want Me Dead, Too. 
> 
> It's not as evident in my other writing but I love Kawakami as a character and I wish she'd gotten more screen time. She's very Jamie Lee Curtis in Trading Places, which, if you haven't seen, you'll love. I've never met anyone who didn't love that movie, and after, you'll have a whole new appreciation.


	5. Existence is Pain-ting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Starfucker- a person who obsesses over celebrity and notoriety, regardless of the object of their affection's character. A good example of a starfucker in journalism is Brian Windhorst in regards to LeBron James. A more mainstream example is Jimmy Kimmel, although I don't think that's a slight. It would be impossible to host a late-night show if he held every guest's feet to the flame. (Wasn't sure if this needed an explanation. I used the term around one of my friends and she looked at me like I was a moron.)
> 
> Alcie- regional term for alcoholic. Common among the families of alcoholics or recovering alcoholics. I'd never heard it until I moved to the city for a few years. In my rural neck of the woods, we usually use the term 'lush.'

_ Monday, May 9, After School _

**Ohya:** can you please stop making us look bad

Keiko stared at her phone, one of her heroes legitimately upset that her reporting showed that of professionals.

A few minutes later, Ohya sent another text.

**Ohya:** mostly kidding. Forgot you don’t take jokes well. Come see me at Crossroads tonight. We’ve got something to discuss.

Keiko was thrilled that Ohya reached out again, but she was also annoyed. ‘These people really haven’t learned to stop fucking with my Mondays.’ She knew her complaints weren’t fair because compared to Makoto, Keiko’s day was sunshine and rainbows. Makoto had missed class for the first time in her entire life, and it was all because Kobayakawa decided to make an example of her. He wasn’t within his right to suspend or expel her, and he knew better than to try, but he did decide that she could spend her entire day in his office, listening to him bitch on and off for the better part of nine hours. 

Keiko tried to apologize, but Makoto instead told her to make it up by helping her blow off steam after school. “Blowing off steam” involved going to someplace called Protein Lovers in Shibuya, which was apparently a gym and definitely somewhere Keiko would never, ever want to find herself. She had learned enough about Makoto’s love affair with action movies the last time they hung out to be worried their activities for the afternoon would be painful. The only thing Makoto told her to bring was some clothes to wear during a workout.

She found her way to the gym, which was just a few steps behind that weird gem salesman she promptly ignored every time she had to make her way through Central Street. Makoto was waiting for her in front of the intimidating green building.

“I didn’t think you’d show,” Makoto said, wearing an uncharacteristic trollish grin that felt stolen. ‘That’s my shit-eating grin. No fair.’

“Against my better judgment,” Keiko said with a huff. “I figured I should be there for my friend.” She played up the word friend in hopes that Makoto would go easier on her.

Makoto chuckled. “Don’t think you’re getting out of this by playing the friend card.” They made their way through the glass doors and towards the counter. Makoto had a membership, but she paid for a guest pass for Keiko. “You didn’t have to listen to Kobayakawa all day. He was so sweaty from yelling. I think he might’ve actually lost weight from the exertion.”

Keiko laughed. She still felt like she was marching into her own funeral, but Makoto had successfully lightened the mood for possibly the first time in her life.

“Come on,” Makoto gestured past the desk. “I’ll show you the locker room.”

Keiko trudged behind her friend, who immediately called her out for ambling.

“Stop delaying your punishment.” Keiko pouted and somehow walked even slower. “God! You’re such a baby!” Makoto opened the door and made Keiko walk through first, pushing her when she continued her snail’s pace. 

Locker rentals were expensive, but Makoto offered to share a locker with Keiko to save some yen, which would have been okay with Keiko until she realized they’d have to get dressed in the same place. 

Keiko wasn’t a never-nude or anything like that, but she was reasonably sure Makoto was about to ask her to help train in whatever martial art she no-doubt practiced. Keiko assumed their student council president was scrawny, not cut like she was preparing for an MMA fight. That surprised was equal to the surprise that Makoto had no problem just stripping in front of her friend.

She must’ve caught Keiko staring because she sighed. “Can you stop being a perv for just one day? It’s a locker room. You’re going to see people naked.” She slipped off her pants and pulled a pair of shorts out of her backpack. 

“Uh.” Keiko gulped. She now had a fear of having her head kicked off. “Not perving. You’re terrifying.”

Makoto rolled her eyes. “Sure,” she said sarcastically. She put on a sports bra. “There. No more boobs. Now you get dressed. I’ll be polite and respectful and refrain from staring.”

‘Our school uniforms sure hide a lot,’ Keiko mused. She pulled her turtleneck off, now self-conscious of how scrawny she was. Makoto held her end of the bargain, though, and didn’t look. She replaced it with her Shujin gym class t-shirt and then changed into a pair of long pants that weren’t her gym clothes. She had a spare pair of comfy pants in the newspaper office that she wore on long production days. 

“Aren’t you so impressed?” Makoto mocked. “You took your clothes off, and I didn’t even gawk.”

Keiko looked down guiltily. “I really wasn’t-”

She was interrupted. “It’s fine.” Makoto sighed. “It’s nice to be appreciated, I guess.” She then grabbed Keiko by the arm and dragged her into an open area with some free weights in one corner and a few heavy bags in the other. The open space looked set up for a martial arts class, or maybe for people to spar. The open area had some mats for stretching.

Keiko took in her surroundings. Some regulars were using the free weights, but nobody on the heavy bags. She was definitely the only novice here. “I know you’re mad at me but do I really have to do this?” Keiko deemed that Makoto was not trying to fight her from the incredulous look she wore.

“I-” Makoto giggled. Nothing good ever came from Makoto giggling. “Did you think I wanted to fight you?”

Keiko nodded. 

“Oh!” More laughter followed. “That wasn’t the plan.”

Keiko let out a breath in relief. “Thank fucking god.”

Makoto was trying to prevent herself from laughing again. “Come on,” she said, leading Keiko over to the open area. “I’ll lead you through stretching so you’ll be slightly less sore in the morning.”

She led Keiko through a series of stretches more strenuous than any exercise she’d done since she stopped running. It’d been a few months. 

“Are you really out of breath just from stretching?”

Keiko wheezed. “Existence is pain.” 

Makoto sighed. “I figured since you’ve been so paranoid lately, you would want to learn some methods for protecting yourself.”

It was a nice gesture, but Keiko expected this to be a waste of time.

“Take five and get a drink. We can go over some forms after.” Makoto walked over a bag she’d left in a cubby off to the side and pulled out a water bottle, leaving Keiko on her own to find a drinking fountain.

‘I didn’t realize I let myself get this out of shape.’ She caught her breath and enjoyed the cold water, although she knew better than to drink too much of it. The stretching was supposed to be the warmup, and she was already sucking air. It didn’t help that Makoto did everything effortlessly. Keiko felt outclassed as she made her way back over, but she could catch up. She felt ready.

“I can’t believe you didn’t run away.” Makoto supplied a sly smile. 

Keiko laughed. “I can’t believe I didn’t run away. You’re right, though. I’ll be less paranoid if I can defend myself.”

“Does that mean you’ll stick with me?” Makoto sounded hopeful.

“If you go running with me before we work out, I’ll stick with whatever this is.” Keiko was confident she could still run circles around nearly anyone.

Makoto nodded confidently. “I can do that.” They spent the next hour going over forms before Makoto finally taught Keiko how to throw a single punch. They’d come close to reaching that point once, but when Makoto learned Keiko couldn’t even make a proper fist, they went back to stances. “All you’re going to do as you are right now is throw something telegraphed and make yourself an easier target.”

Keiko grumbled but didn’t say anything intelligible. Makoto wasn’t wrong but Keiko was exhausted.

Makoto ended up being an incredible teacher. By the end of their work, Keiko could throw a serviceable jab at a heavy bag without hurting her own hand. They then went back into some stretching and cool-down routines. 

“You’re a quick learner.” Keiko was sitting on a bench outside the locker room waiting for Makoto to get back from showering. Keiko would have used the shower but she didn’t want to make a habit of seeing her friend naked. She didn’t realize how much that would bother her. ‘Maybe it’s because my best friend will never have to spend extra money on a cheese grater.’ Ohya wouldn’t mind Keiko being stinky. She doubted Ohya would be able to smell body odor over the alcohol stench.

“You’re a great teacher,” Keiko replied honestly. “I’ve never been this tired.”

Makoto took a seat on the bench next to her friend. “Thank you for coming. This really helped me.”

Keiko chuckled. “When you said you needed to blow off steam, I thought you were going to have me hold pads while you punched out your anger.”

“That thought did run through my mind.” She absent-mindedly fixed her brown headband, which wasn’t situated comfortably. “Where you off to next?”

“Shinjuku.” Keiko assumed admonishment would follow, but it never came.

Makoto looked concerned. “Want me to come with?”

“You? In Shinjuku?” Keiko laughed. “I guess it’s no more preposterous than me in Shinjuku. I’m going to meet Ichiko Ohya.”

“The journalist?”

Keiko nodded. “She’s been monitoring my work, and she wanted to see me tonight.”

“I’ll come with.”

“We should probably avoid wearing our school uniforms there.”

Makoto nodded.

“Don’t wear your workout clothes, please. If they distracted me that much, imagine what they’ll do to all the hosts.” Keiko swore she saw Makoto’s eye twitch.

They went to Makoto’s apartment first as it was on the way to Shinjuku, and they still had a couple of hours before they had to be at Crossroads. Keiko was able to shower and borrow some old clothes to make her self a bit more presentable for Ohya, although she assured Makoto that wouldn’t be necessary.

“There’s a solid chance that she’s three sheets to the wind.” Makoto laughed at Keiko’s old-timey expression. “She’s quite the lush.”

Makoto raised an eyebrow. “Is that a word people actually use?”

Keiko didn’t know, but they spent the rest of the time looking up colloquialisms for getting drunk. They decided knackered was the best one and is the term they’d use if they ever drank together. Makoto seemed off-put by the thought of consuming alcohol. That spawned another playful argument where Keiko tried to get Makoto to check the cabinet above the fridge.

That left them questioning why Sae had a bottle of Jack Daniels hidden behind an unused mixing bowl. Sadly, that question went unanswered as it was time for them to leave.

A train to Shinjuku always made for a colorful ride because the people heading that way at night typically had two things on their mind, and neither of them had anything to do with journalism. This meant Makoto and Keiko were the only two on a semi-serious mission. Makoto had drawn leers from passengers, and Keiko again thanked the supernatural that she wasn’t the type old perverts found attractive. Neither of them dressed like they were going to party, which Keiko thought made it worse. ‘Like I should have to worry about what I’m wearing in the first place,’ she thought angrily. Makoto’s eyes glared forward, and Keiko was sure she was having similar thoughts. 

The train pulled into the station, and the two briskly walked to Crossroads, successfully avoiding a series of hosts interested in getting them into their clubs. 

“Welcome!” Lala-chan’s raspy-deep voice greeted them. “If you’re looking for Ichi-chan, she’s in the backroom waiting for you.” She looked at Makoto. “You look familiar.”

Makoto looked at Keiko, puzzled, but then gestured her friend to the back. She replied to Lala-chan while Keiko walked to the back. “Maybe you know my sister?” 

Keiko imagined that leading to a long conversation because Lala-chan was skilled in the art of making people talk. She’d learned that from Ren, who would speak the world of the bartender, were she ever to get brought up.

The backroom was small and private. It had one booth that made Keiko think that this place was definitely a host club before it was Crossroads. Ohya sat there in a drunken state, reeking of alcohol.

“You finally made it,” she slurred. She burped before she spoke again, and the smell got worse. “Just the girl I’m looking-” another burp- “for.”

Keiko took a seat across from her. “Good to see you’re handling life well.”

“Kid, the world’s a party, and I’m-”

“Completely knackered, I get it.” Keiko didn’t want to be short with Ohya.

“Knackered?”

Keiko nodded. “Just learned what it meant earlier.”

Ohya’s laugh was uncomfortable and uncontrollable. “You’re a funny kid. So funny, in fact, that I’m asking for your help.”

The supernatural had been kind to Keiko today. She was worried Ohya wouldn’t get to the point. “Anything for you, Ohya-san.” Keiko meant it. 

“You suck at barter-” she took a sip of her beverage in the middle of her sentence. “Bartering. Never do anything for free.”

“Fine. We’ll just say you owe me one,” Keiko replied in a faux-terse tone.

“Smart kid. Naming your price later is a good tactic if you can get away with it.” Talking business seemed to sober Ohya up. She leaned forward. “My boss assigned me a dead-end story. I don’t think anything will come of it, but I think you’ll benefit from shadowing me on the assignment.”

“What do you need me for?”

“He wants me to investigate this artist,” she spoke in a hushed tone. “Madarame. You heard of him?”

Keiko nodded. 

“He’s got a kid living with him. Kitagawa, a budding artist. Goes to Kosei. He’s your age.”

Keiko leaned back and raised an eyebrow. “What do you need me for?” 

“We’re gonna doll you up and trap Kitagawa.”

“I already hate this idea.”

Ohya ignored her and continued. “We think Madarame is a plagiarist. I want to corner Kitagawa and get it confirmed.”

Keiko laughed sardonically. “I don’t do ‘dolled up.’”

“You should,” Ohya said, taking another sip of her beverage. “The pretty reporters get the best stories.”

Keiko shot back quickly. “I’d like to succeed on my own merits.”

“You’re stupid, not using this to your advantage.” Ohya looked down. “Just like I was.”

Keiko glowered.

“Here’s a free lesson: You’re a woman, regardless of how skilled you are. Take any advantage you can get.” She sighed. “You stuck your neck out in front of a 7-foot-tall professional athlete, and you’re making a stand against wearing a tight dress and looking pretty.”

“I feel like an asshole when you put it that way.”

“You are an asshole,” Ohya said with a drunken smile. “It’s endearing. We’ll meet up on Central Street on Sunday.”

Ohya wasn’t one for small talk, so she asked Keiko to leave soon after. She walked through the curtain to find Makoto sipping on a Coke. Lala-chan was giving her advice on how to get through to her sister.

“She’ll come around, Mako-chan.” Makoto looked into her drink, and Keiko hoped it was just Coke. “This level of stress can’t last forever. All you can do is be there for her when it ends.”

Makoto nodded. “Thank you, Lala-chan. You’ve given me a lot to think about. I’ll tell Sis you said hi.”

“Have a good night, ladies,” Lala-chan waved as the two left.

“How did it go?” Makoto’s voice sounded calmer than usual. They made their way towards the train station, Makoto checking their surroundings to ensure creeps weren’t following them.

“Ohya wants me to seduce somebody so she can corner them.”

Makoto glared at her. “Did you make sure you followed the technique I showed you?”

“I didn’t punch Ohya!’ Keiko said, laughing. “I’m going to do it.”

“Do you think it’s safe?” Keiko shook her head. “I can work some different techniques in before then. We’ll make it safe.” Makoto’s reassuring smile went a long way towards making Keiko feel okay about her new task.

===

_ Tuesday, May 10, Lunchtime _

Keiko and Makoto made plans to meet in the student council room for lunch that day. Finals started Wednesday, and while neither were concerned they’d fail, extra studying was helpful.

Makoto made lunch that morning, which they shared while they studied. She discovered Keiko’s poor eating habits when fatigue set in minutes into stretching. 

“I can’t reasonably push you that hard knowing you’re running on an empty stomach,” Makoto lectured after Keiko tried to get out of eating her overly healthy, vegetarian lunch.

Much to Keiko’s surprise, it was delicious. She raised an eyebrow at Makoto. “Is there anything you’re bad at?”

Makoto smiled. “It’s amazing how much time you save when you spend 18 years without any friends.”

Keiko laughed sardonically. “You sound awfully proud for somebody speaking such a sad sentence.”

“What about that was-” a knock at the door cut her off. “I wasn’t expecting any visitors,” she muttered while she got up and answered. 

A red-haired girl with her hair tied back with a red bow stood in the doorway.

“Sumi-chan,” Keiko greeted.

“Senpais,” Kasumi bowed. Makoto and Keiko shared a look after the formal gesture. “Ren told me you would be getting some extra study time in. Care if I join?”

“Of course,” Makoto said. “Do you need help with anything?”

“Not necessarily,” Kasumi said. “I was just having a hard time concentrating in the cafeteria. I’d normally try the courtyard or the roof but-”

Keiko interrupted. “I don’t blame you for not wanting to be in any of those places.”

Makoto agreed. “I heard Suzui-chan is awake.”

“Ren-senpai told me,” Kasumi said. “Ann-chan spends every afternoon with her at the hospital.”

“How’s Ren-senpai, Sumi-chan?” Keiko had a teasing inflection in her voice.

Kasumi’s face turned bright red. “Senpai! It’s not like that!”

Makoto rolled her eyes at her friend’s troll-like grin. “Should I tell her about your locker room experience yesterday?”

“Hey!” Keiko tried to reach across the table, but Makoto held her back with a palm to the forehead. “No fair!”

“Kasumi, you’re an athlete, so maybe you’ll understand.” Makoto made a show of clearing her throat. “It’s normal to be naked in a locker room, isn’t it?”

Kasumi nodded.

“But it’s rude to stare?” Keiko didn’t like Makoto’s wolfish grin.

“It’s something I avoid,” Kasumi said. “But sometimes I can’t help it.”

“You’d have looked in this case,” Keiko said. 

Kasumi’s face turned red. “I-” she stammered a little. “Maybe? What were you two at the gym for?”

“I’m teaching Keiko self-defense,” Makoto said. “She’s been paranoid lately.”

“I understand,” Kasumi said. “Your appearance on my father’s show drew a lot of viewers, but he said some viewers thought you came off as arrogant.”

Keiko scoffed. “Don’t these people love Akechi? He’s the biggest assbag there is!”

Makoto and Kasumi laughed, and Keiko expected a retort, but the bell rang, cutting their lunch short.

“Sorry we didn’t get to studying,” Makoto said.

Kasumi waved her off. “I think I needed a laugh more than I needed to study.”

===

_ Sunday, May 15, Evening _

Keiko knew it was unreasonable to think that five days of intense workouts would be enough to make a difference when she put on a dress, but she was feeling herself. Getting dolled up was an excellent way to cap off a successful finals week. 

She wore a classy-for-her slate-grey shirt-dress with a belt around the waist that Makoto probably would have used as casual wear. Ohya had surprisingly good taste in clothes for other people. ‘Maybe she dresses the way she does on purpose.’ The 90’s getup and oval-bob haircut weren’t the most attractive looks. Keiko had to focus, though. Ohya’s personal fashion sense wasn’t part of tonight’s objective. 

Ohya waited for her outside Shibuya Station instead of Central Street. “Change of plans. Madarame has an exhibit in Ueno, and I got you a ticket.”

“How!?” Keiko had heard it was an exclusive event with a high bar of entry. 

Ohya looked prideful. She looked healthier when sober. “I have my ways.”

Keiko didn’t pry further, and the two boarded the train to Ueno. 

The art exhibit had a line extending out the door for entry, but those who had already purchased tickets could walk right in, which Keiko did with ease. ‘Tall with blue hair,’ she reminded herself. Yusuke Kitagawa should be easy enough to find. Keiko made her way through the exhibit, trying to look interested in the art while keeping an eye out for ‘tall with blue hair.’ 

A painting caught her eye before she could find Kitagawa. She wasn’t one to find emotion in a painting, but the rage emoted by this piece drew her in. The painting combined greens, reds, and yellows in a swirling landscape centered around the horizon where the sun met the trees. Keiko wondered if this new Madarame piece was symbolic of the sun setting on a career: Madarame had been hinting at retirement, recently.

“Ah! I see a young woman is showing interest in one of my paintings.” Keiko couldn’t believe she was being approached by  _ the _ Madarame. “This is one of my favorites.”

She stammered at first but quickly found her footing. Madarame wasn’t her objective, but this situation was the equivalent of calling a company’s public relations line and getting their CEO. “Yes, sir.” Keiko bowed in respect. “I’m drawn in by the emotion. The colors portray rage.”

He looked impressed. “It’s impressive for one so young to pick up on such a subtlety.”

‘The cake is a lie,’ Keiko told herself. The compliment was nice, though. “This is a new piece, isn’t it?” 

“One of my newer ones, yes. Why?” He raised an eyebrow.

“I have a theory. Do you mind if I test it out?” Keiko stopped for a second. “I should introduce myself first. I’m Keiko Miyahara, the editor in chief of the Shujin Academy Gazette.”

“A student journalist!” Madarame’s smile didn’t meet his eyes. “It’s good to have aspirations at a young age. I was merely lucky this career fell into my lap. I worked hard, of course, but I never expected a hobby to turn into all of this. So, test your theory. Maybe I can give you a good quote for tomorrow’s paper.”

Keiko put on her customer service smile. ‘Please, for the love of all that is holy, answer this question.’

“This landscape emotes rage, as you’ve already confirmed, but there’s another aspect I think I missed.” He wasn’t looking suspicious yet. “The focal point is an angry sun setting into a gloomy forest. Is this a metaphor symbolic of your retirement?”

His smile was real this time. ‘What was he expecting?’ “My dear, that’s just incredible. There are professionals here who have been covering me for years who haven’t drawn that conclusion. You are correct. My next exhibit after this will be my last. There, I will unveil my final masterpiece.”

Keiko thought she might have to start selling copies of her paper instead of giving them out for free. “Thank you, sir.”

“Anything for art comes in all forms.” He excused himself across the room. 

It was then that Keiko noticed Ann Takamaki standing next to her target. ‘I’m definitely not seducing him, then.’ She made her way across the busy room, weaving in between people. Ann stuck out like a sore blonde thumb in a sea of black, so that made the job a little easier.

She reached the two, and Ann’s expression gave way to surprise. “Keiko-chan, what are you doing here?”

“A friend gave me a ticket,” Keiko said, technically telling the truth. “I thought covering an art exhibit would be good practice.”

Yusuke cleared his throat. “I saw you speaking to my Sensei. He seemed very impressed with you, whatever you were discussing.” He held a hand out. “Yusuke Kitagawa. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Keiko took his hand. “Likewise, Kitagawa. I’m Keiko Miyahara.” ‘What was Ohya even thinking? This man is fucking gorgeous.’ “We were discussing that painting-” she gestured back towards the rage-filled painting near the corner.

“That’s one of Sensei’s favorites,” Yusuke said, but his expression was solemn. 

“He must have been agitated when he created it.”

Yusuke nodded but didn’t speak any further. “Pardon me, but I must continue showing Ann around. I’m hoping she will agree to be the subject of my next painting.”

Keiko’s eyes lit up. That would make for a fantastic story. “Are you going to do it, Ann?”

Ann looked at her nervously. “I-” her look became more confident. “I’ll do it.”

‘Okay, Yusuke, babe, do me a huge favor and never, ever smile again, because I  _ cannot _ .’ Keiko felt like she needed a shower after that thought. ‘Bad brain.’ 

“Splendid! We shall start tomorrow if you’re available.” Yusuke was obviously excited.

Keiko started making her way to the exit when Ann caught up with her. 

“Keiko, hey, can we talk for a second?” She looked relieved.

“Yeah, Ann. What’s up?”

“I need to thank you.” She swept one of her pigtails behind her shoulder. “I was losing my nerve, but I really need the experience. You might’ve just saved my-erm.” She stammered. “Career.”

“Oh, sure, Ann,” Keiko laughed. “Need me to do anything else? I can push you out of the plane when you go skydiving or hold your hand while the doctor gives you shots.” She paused. “I’d make a great life coach.”

Ann laughed as Ren and Ryuji walked up outside the building. 

“Are you following me?” Ren joked. 

“I have to make sure the delinquent transfer behaves,” Keiko mocked. “It’s an important part of my life’s journey.”

“Somebody’s gotta keep this guy in line,” Ryuji said. Ann nudged him. “Oh! Right. I was actually going to talk to you today. I dunno if you meant to, but your work lately has gone a long way towards making my life easier. Thank you.”

Keiko hadn’t ever expected that from Ryuji Sakamoto, of all people. “Uh, you’re welcome. Just doing my job.”

Keiko’s three schoolmates walked away, and Ohya walked up. “Did you get anything?”

“I got an interview with Madarame.”

“You got what?” Ohya looked at her, dumbfounded. “How?”

“He walked up, I told him I was a reporter, and he answered my questions.” Keiko grinned widely at her senior. 

“This fucking kid,” Ohya shook her head. “And I take it you’re going to hog this story to yourself.”

Keiko nodded. “You bet your sweet ass I am.”

“You’re going to be teaching me pretty soon.”

===

_ Monday, May 16, Morning _

Keiko yawned. She was up late Sunday night trying to get Madarame’s retirement announcement into story form before her 1 a.m. print deadline. She’d scrambled like this before, but this story extended beyond the school, which made her a bit nervous. Her star had risen to a point where the media requests would start pouring in again. Keiko didn’t like the always-on world of a media figure. 

She secretly feared turning into Akechi.

Keiko hadn’t checked her phone aside from shutting off her alarm until she was sitting on the train from Shibuya to the school. It was rare to find a seat, but she managed to sit somewhere with enough room for her to mess around on her phone. She’d received a few different text messages.

**Makoto:** you ran out of newspapers

**Keiko:** Huh?”

**Makoto:** you didn’t print enough copies. We have adults coming into the school trying to buy them

**Keiko:** ...they do realize the story is online, too, right?

**Makoto:** I think you’re outgrowing your audience.

**Keiko:** I wasn’t being serious when I said I was too good for Shujin

Makoto replied with a laughing panda emoji. 

The train slowed and Keiko made her way towards the school gate. True to Makoto’s word, it was much busier than usual. Keiko was lucky to sneak by without being recognized. 

===

_ Afternoon _

Keiko hated that Inui taught history. It had been her favorite subject in school until he took it over from Ushimaru. Him bad-mouthing her to her face and not understanding why what he did was wrong was the icing on the cake. 

Apparently, he thought that cake needed a cherry on top because he shifted gears. The second class started to gush all about Madarame and how incredible Keiko’s story from this morning was. 

“It’s touching to see the younger generation taking an interest in the arts,” he gushed. “Madarame is truly a marvel of our time. Having one of Shujin’s very own break such important news is a feather in the academy’s cap.”

Eyes turned towards Keiko, who was desperately Wishing for some kind of distraction. Guilt followed as the last time she wished for a distraction, Shiho Suzui jumped off the roof. ‘I’ll just wear this one,’ she mused. Two options stuck out to her: She could either play along with Inui or call him out. ‘Smart versus fun.’ Inui had gestured her way, giving her the floor to say something. She took the time and ran with it. 

“You called me out for potentially being a member of a supposed criminal gang literally last week.” The room was silent. “It wasn’t even a week. It’s been like four days.”

Keiko had to give Inui some credit. He continued right on with the lesson like she hadn’t just called him on his bullshit. She thought she’d gotten away with having an attitude until he pulled her aside when she tried to walk out.

He looked angry, but Inui was the teacher Keiko feared the least at the school. He was a bitter starfucker who probably wanted to be anything but a teacher, but he never found the right coattails to ride. 

Keiko wouldn’t be surprised if he were going to try and ride hers. He could fuck right off with that. 

“Miyahara-san, I need you to show more respect in the classroom,” he admonished. Inui looked more hurt by her outburst than he was angry.

Keiko didn’t let that deter her. “Excuse me, Inui-sensei, but aren’t I owed a little respect?” She rolled her eyes. 

“I’m still a-”

“I was literally in the room while you tried to further a rumor about me being part of a criminal organization!” He couldn’t meet Keiko’s eyes. “You don’t even have the stones to apologize to me. I’m sure you’ll go tell Kobayakawa how disrespectful I’m being.”

“I’m not-”

“No, it’s fine. Kamoshida wasn’t the only problem in this school. He was just the biggest problem.” Keiko spat her words. “This school has a starfucker probl-”

She was interrupted when another teacher entered the room and grabbed her by the arm. “Miyahara!” Kawakami’s tone gripped Keiko’s attention. “Do you want to explain what’s going on?”

Keiko stammered. “I’m just-”

“You’re verbally assaulting a faculty member.” Keiko almost felt bad. “Come with me.” 

Keiko expected she was getting dragged to the faculty office or even Kobayakawa’s office. Instead, Kawakami let go of her arm once they were out of earshot from Inui’s office. “You need to be more careful.” She kept walking towards the school’s front gate, and Keiko kept up beside her. Monday meant no reason to stop at the newspaper office.

Keiko didn’t argue. “Thank you for stepping in.”

“It wasn’t my idea.” Makoto was waiting for her at the school gate. “I can’t believe I’m running errands for the Student Council.”

Makoto laughed. “You could have stayed with Chouno-”

“I’d rather run errands for the Student Council.” Kawakami sighed exasperatedly. She looked at the two girls. “Uh. I like Chouno. She’s just too much for large doses.”

Neither of the students could disagree. They made their way towards the train station. Keiko now felt that she understood Makoto’s need to punch out frustrations. She was excited about their workout.

===

_ Evening _

**Alibaba:** I’m calling in a favor

Keiko mulled over responding to Alibaba’s message and decided it was in her best interest to stay on the master hacker’s good side.

**SendNews:** No nudes.

**Alibaba:** Already have those.

**SendNews:** please be kidding

**Alibaba:** I need you to go to LeBlanc. Get a cup of coffee and talk to the kid

**SendNews:** your favor is having me hang out with my friend

**Alibaba:** I need to know if he’s dangerous.

**SendNews:** Why do you have LeBlanc bugged? Are you related to Sojiro?

**Alibaba:** I ask no questions, I expect the same courtesy from you

**SendNews:** buzzkill. Heading there now.

This was the most activity Keiko had done on a Monday in her high school career, and she was surprisingly not exhausted. Making a concerted effort to exercise was a more efficient way to become more energetic than caffeinating was.

That didn’t stop her from sticking with the absurd amount of coffee she consumed. She left her house without checking her email, which was her real intention when she sat down. She told her parents where she was going and walked the short distance to LeBlanc.

She entered the cafe to find Sojiro showing Ren how to make a cup of coffee as she had on a previous visit. He explained the intricacies of matching temperature with the type of bean and the flavor of each, which Keiko found incredibly dull. She’d rather listen to Makoto ramble on about how hard she worked. 

“Well, you have a perfect guinea pig,” Sojiro said. “You want to try his coffee? It won’t be as good as mine.”

Keiko looked at Ren. “You gonna take that from an old geezer?”

“You’re lucky I don’t get hurt feelings, kid.” Sojiro pointed a finger at her. He checked his watch. “I need to get home for the day. You damn kids keep making me lose track of time.”

“Time flies when you’re having fun, Boss,” Ren said. 

Sojiro rolled his eyes and left the cafe. Keiko and Ren sat in silence for a bit. Ren had to finish up the dishes, and Keiko was trying to make heads or tails of the coffee.

“It’s not bad,” she said. “It’s definitely not as good as Sojiro’s.”

Ren shrugged. “I’ll consider that a victory.” He drained the sink and took a seat at the counter next to Keiko. “What was Madarame like?”

“You saw the story?” He nodded. “Madarame is interesting. I don’t think I’d have gotten that interview if I was an adult.”

“Anything seem off?”

Keiko shrugged. “I wasn’t on top of my game. I was shook by even getting the interview in the first place. You guys get to talk to him?” 

“No.” Ren shook his head. “We went because Ann is posing for Yusuke. We wanted to be sure he wasn’t a creep.”

“He can creep on me any day.” Keiko jokingly fanned herself. 

She expected a laugh, but Ren didn’t oblige. “He was stalking Ann before we confronted him, so we were pretty concerned. I think he’s just awkward, though.”

Keiko nodded. “I get the impression he doesn’t have much time for anything except art.”

Ren agreed, and Keiko took another sip of her coffee. 

“What were you doing there?”

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.” Keiko’s inner monologue said she’d keep a straight face after saying that, but her internal monologue lied. She and Ren shared a laugh immediately after. “I got asked to help a colleague. I was supposed to seek out Kitagawa and seduce him.”

Ren nearly spat out his coffee. “What asshole came up with that idea?”

“Remember that alcie I met at Crossroads?” 

Ren chuckled. “Was she drunk?”

“Shit would have been easier if she was,” Keiko said.

“Why did she need you to seduce Yusuke?” He raised an eyebrow inquisitively, but Keiko tried to change the subject. 

“You missed the opportunity to say seduce-ke.”

Ren made a noise like he was going to speak, but he paused. “Huh. You might actually stand a chance with him. Also, no deflecting. What was her plan?”

“How’d you know my colleague is a woman?”

Ren shrugged. “The idea is straight out of a rom-com. Plus, that idea would be creepy if a man came up with it.”

“Fair.” Keiko thought for a second. It’s a shame Ohya’s plan didn’t work out. That would have made a great meet-cute. “She wanted me to be friendly with him. Nothing more than that. She thinks there’s something shady going on with Madarame.” She couldn’t read Ren’s expression, but she swore his eyes flashed when she said that. “You know something?”

“Not yet,” Ren said. “I was with Ann today while she modeled for Yusuke. I’ll be honest. I got bad vibes from Madarame the second I stepped into that exhibit.”

“You have great instincts.” He snuffed out Kamoshida almost immediately. He knew Kobayakawa was a crook from the start. Keiko didn’t believe in coincidences, nor did she believe Ren had been at Shujin long enough to create a case against the two beyond a gut feeling. “I trust them. What don’t you like?”

Ren sighed. “He’s an always-on type, right? Like, look at the difference between how he talked to you and how he was talking to the other reporters. His demeanor changed in seconds flat.”

Keiko nodded.

“He knew you weren’t ‘up’ on the deeper meanings of art immediately. Wasn’t that explanation he gave you pretty rudimentary for a world-famous artist?”

She shook her head. “He might have been putting it in layman’s terms.”

“But he shifted so quickly it could have given you whiplash.” Ren shifted in his seat. “I’m going to investigate more. We’re going to see Kitagawa again.”

“Think you could tell me what you dig up?”

Ren nodded. “Consider it payback for all you’ve done for me.”

Keiko laughed. “Huh. I figured all the free coffee was payback enough. Think you could get me Kitagawa’s number?”

“You gonna ask him about Madarame?”

“Uh.” That wasn’t Keiko’s intention. “Yeah. That’s totally what I was going to do. Heh.”

===

_ Tuesday, May 17, Evening _

“Why were those kids you were talking to outside the exhibit at Madarame’s house?” 

Keiko answered her phone, immediately met by Ohya’s terse, shrill questioning. “Takamaki is live modeling for Kitagawa.” She tried and failed to keep the jealousy out of her voice. A man as enchanting as Yusuke deserved someone as beautiful as Ann if that was the case. 

“And she has an entourage with her. Why?”

“They’re just worried Kitagawa’s a creep.” Keiko sighed. “Ann’s a good friend of theirs. They’re allowed to worry about her.”

Keiko found Ohya’s tone annoying. “That doesn’t strike you as strange?”

“Did Ren mouth off to you or something? What are you so suspicious of?”

Ohya’s tone shifted. “It’s just weird. After weeks of watching to see who’s coming in and out of that house, the first group I see leaving are your friends.”

“Coincidences happen. Ann’s beautiful. It makes sense that Kitagawa wants to paint her.”

“I’m sorry.” Ohya sounded sorry, Keiko thought. “I’m a bit annoyed Sunday didn’t go as I planned.”

“If it makes you feel better, Ren got me Kitagawa’s number.”

“That does make me feel better.”

“Me too.” Keiko tried not to sound too excited. “I can stage an interview with both him and Takamaki at the atelier. That gets me on the inside, plus gets me content for my next issue. Ann’s a friend. She won’t mind.”

“This better work.”

Keiko chuckled. “Says the woman using an unpaid student volunteer to do her dirty work. Fuck you.”

“You learn too fast.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know what to say about this chapter other than I think it's the strongest work I've ever put out. I don't think this story is quite what I initially had envisioned, but there are just too many different dynamics too explore, and I'd be disappointed with myself for ignoring them. 
> 
> My update schedule on both stories has gotten screwed up massively by the election and work just overall being insane. I'm sticking to working on this story because there's less to figure out. I'm trying to avoid straying too far from canon, which means I'm not leaning on my own creativity quite so hard. Plus, Keiko is basically my way of venting about my job.


	6. See Something, Say Something

_ Wednesday, May 18, Lunchtime _

Makoto and Keiko intended to spend their lunch in the student council room in an attempt to continue their investigation into the Phantom Thieves. 

Progress was slow-going. They’d not received much from other students as far as leads, and Keiko was quick to shoot down Makoto’s insistence that it might be Ren. They didn’t have many other viable suspects.

“He’s got enough problems as it is,” Keiko said. “He doesn’t need us beating his door down on an investigation.”

Makoto gave her a side-eyed glance and continued bringing up names. “Ann Takamaki.”

Keiko agreed, in principle. “She’s got more reasons than anyone else to go after him. Ryuji, too. I just don’t think it’s fair of us to accuse Kamoshida’s victims outright. Who else we got?”

“Rio Fujin-” The two girls jumped when they heard a knock at the door. Makoto almost expected it to be Kobayakawa running interference because he’d been quiet since she turned on him and told Keiko of his demands. Radio silence from Kobayakawa was unusual, even when he wasn’t demanding she investigate the heroes who took down a rapist gym teacher. Instead, the door opened, and Miss Kawakami entered.

“Kawakami-sensei,” Makoto greeted. “How can I help you?”

“I’m here for Keiko.” Kawakami huffed. “Inui is bugging me about what kind of punishment I gave for her outburst in class the other day.”

Keiko rolled her right wrist as if saying “get on with it.” “So, what’s my punishment?”

“I told him you were going to be spending your lunches with me in my classroom for the next week.”

“Aw, Kawakami-sensei,” Keiko said, mocking her teacher. “You can just tell me when you want to hang out.”

The perpetually exhausted teacher rolled her eyes. “If you guys can just do whatever you’re doing here in my room, I’d appreciate it.” She sighed. “If Inui doesn’t see you in my classroom, he might go after you again.”

Neither Keiko nor Makoto thought she was unreasonable, so they followed her to her classroom.

Ryuji Sakamoto was waiting by her door.

“Sakamoto-kun, what can I do for you?”

He rubbed the back of his head. “I wanted to talk to you about somethin’.”

“Can you two-” Kawakami was about to ask Keiko and Makoto to give her a minute, but Ryuji interrupted her.

“Keiko probably already knows what I’m here for, and I don’t give a damn if Niijima-senpai hears.”

Something in Ryuji’s voice told Keiko that he wasn’t fond of Makoto.

“Lang-” Kawakami looked at Keiko, who had a mischievous gleam in her eye. “Oh, nevermind. That’s fine, then.” She opened her classroom door. Makoto and Keiko pulled chairs up next to Kawakami’s desk, and Sakamoto chose to stand. 

“I just wanted to thank you,” Ryuji said. “Thanks for helping clear my name. I don’t have much else to say besides that.”

Kawakami nodded. “It was the right thing to do.” 

He started walking towards the door when Makoto stopped him. “Sakamoto-kun, wait. Did I-” 

“You didn’t do anything, Niijima-senpai. That’s the problem.” He slammed the door on his way out.

The room stayed silent for a minute while Makoto seethed with rage.

Keiko broke that silence by whispering to Kawakami. “Bad time for this, but can we admit that was a dope way to leave a room?”

Makoto cracked her knuckles. “Keiko, I can hear you.”

She gulped. “I now realize making fun of my self-defense teacher is a mistake.”

===

_ Saturday, May 21, After School _

Keiko met Ann at Shibuya Station. The atelier was just beyond Central Street in an upscale neighborhood that Keiko never expected to have a reason to be. 

Ann was typically friendly with Keiko, but she was shifty and nervous all day. They originally planned to meet at the school gate and head straight to the atelier, but Ann wanted to return home for some reason. 

That reason was more absurd than Keiko could have imagined. Ann showed up at Central Street large and in charge, her incredibly round shape held together by an amalgam of every single piece of clothing she’d ever owned.

“Uh, Takamaki-”

Ann cut Keiko off abruptly. “Ann, please. I’d prefer to be on a first-name basis with anyone who sees me naked.”

“That-” So, Yusuke is using her as a nude live model. That explained Ann’s odd behavior. “Are you nude modeling?” 

Ann nervously bit the inside of her lip and nodded. 

“Why are you doing this, then?” Keiko raised an eyebrow when Ann didn’t respond. “Are you being forced to?”   
She shook her head. “I want to do it. I said I’d do it. I’m just nervous now.”

Keiko could understand being afraid to bare it all. Ann wasn’t showing other people in a locker room her breasts out of a need to change. She was to strip for a man she barely knew who would be documenting her body for the world. That was a lot to ask of a 16-year-old girl. “Can you back out?”

Ann stood firm, which only had the effect of making her look like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. Keiko wondered if her bulbous form would deflate if she exhaled. “I refuse to back out.”

“So, you instead chose to cosplay as Principal Kobayakawa.”

That lightened Ann’s mood and Keiko offered to rent a gurney to get her to Madarame’s. Somehow, Ann was able to make the walk without sweating through her many layers. 

“Yusuke is okay with you coming, too?” Ann asked Keiko once they got closer to the atelier. “I haven’t asked him about it.”

Keiko shrugged. “He told me as long as I didn’t get in the way, I could sit in.” She put on a dramatic voice in imitation of the young artist. “‘It shall be my way of sharing the artistic process with the laymen.’”

That drew a chuckle from Ann. “He has a flair for the dramatic.”

“It’s adorable.” Just then, Keiko noticed a paw poking its way out of Ann’s bag. “Hey! Why do you have a cat with you?”

Ann startled. “Huh?” She opened the top of her satchel. “It’s Ren’s cat. He’s uh, good at comforting me.” There was a series of meows, and Keiko swore Ann understood them.

“Oh. Well, what if I carried him? That bag can’t be comfortable.”

Morgana poked his head out of the bag and gave Ann a look. 

“What do you think, Mona?” The cat mewed something back and jumped from the bag to Keiko’s shoulder.

“Aw! Shoulder kitty!” She almost lost her concentration as they approached the home and rang the doorbell. She had Morgana cradled in her arms like a baby. “This just became my favorite story ever.”

“Because you get to play with Morgana?”

Keiko nodded as Yusuke answered the door and led them upstairs into a shabby grey room with paint splotches on the wall and canvasses strewn across the floor. There was a small window, and Keiko felt some kind of oppressive aura when she stepped in. Something about the room set off her claustrophobia, but she didn’t have a proper explanation as to why. 

Morgana bolted into the hallway within minutes of them entering the room. Ann must have noticed, but it didn’t seem she cared. Keiko gestured towards Ann, who was making awkward conversation with Yusuke about her outfit. Ann waved her off. 

“Have you uh… gained weight?” It was unusual for Yusuke to sound unsure of his words when he spoke.

“Kitagawa-san-”

“Yusuke, please,” He corrected.

“Yusuke, you aren’t supposed to ask a woman that question,” Keiko said. 

Ann feigned like her hurt her feelings, but she was a terrible actor. 

They made stilted conversation, with Yusuke trying to get Ann to take her clothes off and Ann obliging one garment at a time while Keiko looked on. She was finally down to a red-camo tank-top and shorts when there was a loud clatter in the other room. Keiko silently cursed her luck. Ann’sr lack of fluffiness enabled her to bolt from the room in search of Morgana, who had to have been the source of the noise. Yusuke followed quickly, and Keiko would have, too, had her phone not rang. The ID read unknown number, but Keiko answered anyway.

“It’s Keiko,” she said into the receiver.

A deep, distorted voice greeted her. “This is Alibaba.”

“Whoa. I didn’t realize you were James Earl Jones.”

“Funny,” Alibaba replied. Shouts came from the other room but Keiko was too distracted to notice. She started to head down the stairs and towards the front door, passing Madarame, muttering a greeting. He only returned a surprised look. Alibaba continued. “You need to return home immediately. I have reason to believe there are intruders.”

“Uh. You serious?”

“I am.”

Keiko sighed. “On my way. Thank you.” She hung up, then wondered why Alibaba knew anything about what was going on inside her house. She scrambled to Shibuya Station and boarded the train. Luckily, she made it in time to catch a train before rush hour started. Getting on a train and getting to Yongen-Jaya was simple. Getting to her house was hard if only because of the nerves she now felt. Keiko realized now that she had no way to protect herself if there indeed was a home invader. Her parents should still be at work, and the only things she could think to use as a weapon were already inside the house. A lightbulb went off in her brain, and she made a brief detour to the batting cage. A surly middle-aged man with grey hair worked the counter and gave her a surprised look when she asked if she could borrow a baseball bat.

“What you need it for?” he said, eyebrows raised.

Keiko huffed. It was urgent. “I’m pretty sure somebody’s broke into my house.”

“Shouldn’t you call the cops?” 

“I don’t want to waste their time in case it’s nothing,” Keiko said. 

“So, you choose to waste my time instead?”

“Man, you work at a fucking batting cage.”

He didn’t argue after that. He handed over a heavy silver metal bat, and Keiko continued her walk towards her house. Sure enough, there was a car she didn’t recognize parked in their parking spot. It often went unused because her parents didn’t own a car. 

The doors were unlocked and the lights were on, so Keiko thought whoever was in the house either had a key or picked the lock. ‘If it’s Grandpa, it could feasibly be either option,’ Keiko mused.’

She entered the front door and was greeted by a sight that would demand eye bleach and a trip to the nearest mental health institution. Her parents came home from work early, and she would never be able to use the word ‘came’ in a sentence again. 

It was a strange scene, though. Her mom watched while her dad was down on all fours while a woman in what was at one point maid costume stuck a finger up his…

Keiko looked away and cleared her throat. “I’m- uh, I’m just going to go upstairs.” She was willing to let this lie and pretend it never happened until the maid’s eyes met hers. “Oh, fuck me. Wait, don’t fuck me. Please, don’t.”

If anyone tried to stop her from running upstairs, Keiko didn’t notice. The heartbeat drumming in her ears drowned out everything else. 

Hours later, post-cry and depression nap, Keiko regretted her decision to run upstairs. She should have run out the front door. If she tried to leave now, she’d only have questions to answer and she really didn’t feel like talking to her parents. It would be a long night, so she powered on her desktop and sat there staring at an empty screen, trying to think of  _ anything _ that would distract her from whatever the hell her parents were doing. She opened her chat app and had a message from Alibaba.

**Alibaba:** ru ok?

**SendNews:** no

**Alibaba:** I knew I should have called the police

**SendNews:** oh. It wasn’t a home invader

**SendNews:** the only thing getting invaded was my dad’s butthole

**Alibaba:** what

**Alibaba:** was ur dad cheating?

**SendNews:** my mom was watching

**Alibaba:** what the fuck

**SendNews:** It’s so much worse dude

**Alibaba:** how much worse could it possibly be

**SendNews:** the hooker was my teacher

**Alibaba:** ok wtf

**Alibaba:** btw thanks for helping me spy on the kid

**SendNews:** sure. Up for a game of Civ?

Alibaba replied with a thumbs-up emoji. They played late into the night. 

===

_ Monday, May 23, Lunchtime _

Keiko, by some stroke of luck, didn’t see Kawakami that morning. ‘These fuckers ruined epithets for me!’ Her thoughts paused again. ‘They ruined swearing! Shit!’

She wasn’t lucky enough to avoid Kawakami at lunchtime. Even worse was the teacher asking if Niijima could give them a few seconds alone. Keiko watched Makoto longingly as she made her way towards the door and closed it.

“I really don’t want to talk about this.” Keiko tried to look away from Kawakami’s pleading eyes. She looked a lot younger when she was about to beg. It was almost like she was talking to another student begging for forgiveness over some silly high school drama. 

“Can I…” She choked back a sob. “I’m sorry.”

Keiko sighed. “I walked in on you fingering my dad.”

Kawakami didn’t reply. She looked down and wiped her eyes. “Are you going to rat me out?”

The question bothered Keiko. “You really think I’m a narc?” She scoffed. “I don’t kink shame. I just didn’t want to walk in on my dad getting assblasted.”

Kawakami was still a tad tearful, but that made her laugh. “It’s not a kink.”

“I was giving you the benefit of the doubt that you aren’t selling your body,” Keiko said. “Do I want to know what’s going on?”

Kawakami shook her head. “I owe money to some bad people,” she said quietly.

“Are you safe?” Keiko’s tone shifted the power dynamic. She sounded more like the teacher. 

Kawakami nodded. “It’s not yakuza or anything. I don’t make enough money here, so I needed a second job.”

“And selling yourself makes more money than 7-11 would.”

“Exactly.” She sighed. “I’m getting too old for this.”

“For teaching or for-”

“The other thing,” Kawakami said. “Thank you for not ratting me out.”

Keiko waved her off. “Any time, just stay away from my dad’s butt.”

===

_ Monday, May 30, Morning _

‘Makoto is such a trooper,’ Keiko thought. Walking in on her parents doing  _ whatever the fuck it was they were doing _ had thrown her for so much of a loop that Makoto needed a crash course in putting the whole paper together by herself. Today’s issue of the Shujin Academy Gazette wholly belonged to Makoto. 

Finding her parents in such a state prevented Keiko from getting most of the necessary work done, and had Makoto and Kasumi not stepped up, there wouldn’t have been a paper. 

Kasumi stepping in to help was a surprise born from a happy coincidence. She’d been allowed to have her gymnastics practice at the school for the first time as the gym she typically used was having their floor waxed. Thinking she’d hang out with her friends after practice while they worked, she walked in on them having an utterly mundane argument regarding the paper’s layout even though all their content hadn’t come in yet. Keiko was trying to explain that designing a page around a story they don’t even have a character count for is begging for disaster on Sunday.

“What if I just talked to Takamaki about her modeling?” They jumped, not realizing they had a red-headed intruder. 

“Jesus,” Keiko chuckled. “You’re lucky Makoto was sitting down.” 

Kasumi’s idea was good, and they were able to throw a paper together with that additional content. She had zero clue what she was doing but she also had no problem being edited. Keiko would take an inexperienced reporter who didn’t mind being edited over a veteran that thought they knew better.

Keiko was starting to feel like herself again, though, which meant she’d have some catching up to do with the people in her life that she’d been ignoring, starting with Ren and Sojiro, who had reached out multiple times wondering where she went. It was sweet, Keiko thought. Even her parents hadn’t noticed anything was wrong, although they may have been avoiding their daughter. She was undoubtedly avoiding them. 

Keiko made it to LeBlanc that morning and received the standard greeting from Sojiro.

“Great, the  _ other _ kid is here.”

Keiko mocked a frown. “I can tell when I’m not wanted,” she said and started to turn around.

Sojiro chuckled and she turned around, taking a seat at the bar. “It’s good to see you joining the rest of the world again.”

She raised an eyebrow. “What’d Ren tell you?”

“Ren didn’t tell me anything,” Sojiro shrugged. “My daughter did.” He set a plate of curry and a cup of coffee in front of her. “She asked me to check on your house after you didn’t pick up the phone. I didn’t know you two were friends.”

“Alibaba  _ is _ your daughter!” Her phone went off immediately.

**Alibaba:** he doesn’t know about that, stupid

Sojiro rolled his eyes. “Is that what she’s calling herself?” He chuckled. “That kid. She’s had a tough time-” the conversation cut off when Ren made his way down the stairs.

“‘Mornin.” Ren looked dead on his feet, which made loud, heavy footsteps on the stairs. He brightened slightly when he noticed Keiko. “You done ignoring me?”

Keiko looked sheepish. “If it makes you feel better, I was ignoring everyone except Makoto, pretty much.”

“Speaking of Makoto, can you tell her to stop following me?” 

Keiko laughed. “She wants a piece of that ass.”

Ren tried to prevent himself from laughing. He failed. “Something tells me that’s not the case.” 

“I mean, you could do worse,” Keiko chuckled and shrugged. “I tried telling her you had nothing to do with the Phantom Thieves, but she’s stubborn. Sorry. It’s also probably a coincidence. You spend a lot of time in Shibuya and we meet at the gym there almost every day.”

He nodded. “That does make sense. Maybe I’m just paranoid.”

“Maybe you’re a Phantom Thief-” she got cut off when Morgana, who typically stayed upstairs until Ren left for school, bounded up on her lap.

“Kid, I told you to keep that cat upstairs,” Sojiro said, looking away from the morning’s dishes. Morgana meowed something back. “I don’t know what you’re saying!” He shouted at the cat. “I swear, it’s like he understands everything I say.”

“Hi, kitty,” Keiko said as Morgana meowed in protest. “Is your cat glaring at me?”

“He does that sometimes,” Ren chuckled. “Be nice to Keiko, Mona.”

Morgana hopped into Ren’s bag as the two finished up their meal and left for school.

“What made you shut down like that?” Ren asked after they’d left LeBlanc. They were about to the station. Keiko didn’t answer the question. “Is it really that bad?”

“I can’t tell you the whole story.” The words came out faster than Keiko intended. “I can give you the juicy- no. Sorry. Can’t use that word either. God.” She took a second to wipe her glasses on her shirt. “It was fucking gross.”

“You walk in on your parents or something?”

Keiko nodded.

“Oh.” Ren stopped moving for a second. “Were they at least having-”

Keiko interrupted his teasing. “I swear to god. I will tell the whole school you’re Phantom Thief and they’ll fucking believe me.”

Morgana meowed loudly from inside Ren’s bag. 

“She’s kidding, Morgana.” The meowing calmed.

“You really understand everything that cat says, don’t you?”

Ren nodded. “He’s just defensive. He likes you, though.”

They left the train and went to Station Square intending to switch trains to head to school but they had a detour. Kasumi Yoshizawa was being harassed by a man at least twice her age in front of the Hachiko statue. 

“Come on, let me walk you to school-” Ren interrupted whatever terrible action this man was about to take.

“She’s too old for you, bro.” Ren stepped between them and the guy took a step back.

“Senpai- it’s-” He cut her off, addressing the man instead.

“I was just trying to help-”

“It didn’t look that way to us,” Keiko said. “Looked like you were trying to take off with an underage girl.”

“I-” the man stammered. “I won’t be talked to that way!” He stepped forward to get in Ren’s face. His left shoulder turned forward as he cocked back his fist to swing.

Ren looked like he knew what he was doing, Keiko thought, but she stomped on the back of the man’s knee anyway.

“Run!” 

The three took off towards the train and went to school like nothing happened. Nobody said a word.

===

_ Lunchtime _

Keiko and Makoto were no longer required to spend their lunches with Kawakami; Inui had long forgotten about his grudge against the young reporter. But the girls found themselves enjoying the younger teacher’s company on their lunch breaks. It helped that she was as interested in the Phantom Thieves as they were. 

She didn’t seem particularly worried about exposing them or bringing them to justice, either. 

“I’m just so damn curious,” Kawakami said. They’d been going over more evidence that day. One of the volleyball players, a first-year, transferred schools. The move looked suspicious, given its proximity to Kamoshida’s confessions, and Fujinami kept to herself most times. She very well could have been the kind of weirdo that would leave a calling card for a teacher, and her parents could have transferred her out to make a cold trail.

None of the three girls knew her very well, though, so they would need to find a first-year to give an opinion.

One just happened to knock on Kawakami’s door right when they were wondering who they could ask. 

“Excuse me,” Kasumi said. She’d opened the door before anyone could answer. “Care if I join you?”

Keiko made a show of covering up papers on her desk, sending some of them onto the floor. “Don’t let her see!”

Makoto and Kawakami glared at her.

“You could have played along,” she said somberly. “Sure. We’re not exactly making progress.”

Kasumi took a seat of her own and pulled out her lunch, a giant bento with ridiculous amounts of food. Even more ridiculous was the rate at which she ate. It was gone in mere minutes. 

“H-” Keiko stammered. “How?”

Makoto couldn’t believe what she was seeing either. “Where does it all go?”

Kasumi’s reaction was delayed a bit while she processed all the food she’d just eaten. “Huh?” She’d just noticed the stares and blushed. “Sorry.”

“I’m more impressed than grossed out,” Kawakami said. The other two girls agreed. “I don’t think we’ve met.”

Kasumi stood up and bowed. “I’m sorry, Sensei! I’m Kasumi Yoshizawa, a first-year.”

“O-” Kawakami didn’t know how to take the overly formal greeting. She’d spent too much time getting used to the constant-but-understandable disrespect from Keiko. She looked in Keiko’s direction. “Your friends are all so well behaved. Why are you such a pain in the ass?”

“More like a pain in the knee,” Kasumi said.

Keiko snorted. “Don’t!” She nervously tapped her pencil on the desk while Makoto looked at her expectantly. “I didn’t do anything.”

The teacher scoffed. “Like anyone believes that coming from you.” 

“I’m an angel.”

“Satan was an angel,” Makoto corrected. 

Kasumi shifted in her seat awkwardly. “I actually came here to thank Keiko-senpai for her help this morning.” She sighed. “A man tried to accost me at the station today. Her and Ren-senpai helped me get away.”

“No problem,” Keiko said. “Thank Makoto. She’s the one that taught me how to defend myself.”

“I don’t think it takes much training to kick a man in the back of the knee, Senpai.” 

Keiko made a frustrated noise. “I was trying to impress Makoto, but you just had to go and ruin it.”

===

_ Sunday, June 6, Daytime _

“ _ I have committed crimes unbecoming of being an artist…” _

Keiko sat in LeBlanc watching the frail, grey Madarame on the TV. Her feelings were somewhere between elated and infuriated. Elated because she now had a lead story for tomorrow’s paper: The Phantom Thieves left Madarame a calling card only days ago, and there was little information available about what the card said or why. It was left at the exhibit, but one of Madarame’s people found it. Keiko was curious about what the card said. This was a concrete story, though. Madarame had done something, at least in the eyes of the Phantom Thieves. 

Keiko was frustrated, though, that now she’d have to redesign the whole page. ‘Gross.’

She placed a quick call to Kitagawa, who was all too happy to share some stories about his now-former sensei. 

“Would you like to meet up at LeBlanc?” Keiko was already sitting at the coffee shop waiting to head to the school. “I don’t know if you remember Ren, but he actually lives here.”

“Ah, yes. I remember Amamiya-san,” Yusuke said with a slight stutter. Keiko noticed and thought it unusual. “I can head there now.”

“Perfect.” Today wouldn’t take as long as Keiko expected. Ren came back from behind the counter. He’d been stirring the pot while Sojiro took care of something at home. He’d be back in a little bit.

“Who were you talking to?” He set a rag on the counter and leaned up against it.

“Yusuke Kitagawa. I’m interviewing him about Madarame’s confession.” Ren raised an eyebrow at her.

“Madarame’s confession to what? Drinking too much prune juice?” Keiko rolled her eyes while Ren laughed at his own joke, the fucking dork. She tried to ignore her heart melting.

Speaking of her heart melting, Yusuke must have been in the neighborhood because he showed up at LeBlanc in under 10 minutes. Keiko stood up from her seat to greet him.

“Yusuke, how’s it going?”

“As well as can be expected,” he said, then looked in Ren’s direction. “Hello.”

“‘Sup?”

Keiko and Yusuke took a seat in one of the booths while Yusuke replied. “Nothing, just aiding another artist in a masterpiece.”

Keiko chuckled. “Journalism isn’t art.”

“Art is everywhere!” Then Yusuke looked down. “Oh. That’s something Sens- I mean, Madarame would say.”

“It’s not like you can just forget about him,” Keiko said. 

Yusuke nodded. “We should get this started. Ren’s mentioned before how quick your turnaround has to be.”

Keiko raised an eyebrow. “How close are you two?”

“We got off to a rough start, but as it turns out, Ren has quite the eye for art.”

Ren snorted. “I just indulge your bullshit.”

“It is necessary,” Yusuke paused, “for all great artists to have somebody who, and I quote, indulges their bullshit.”

Keiko cut him off as politely as she could. He was perhaps more self-aware than she expected, which didn’t do much in solving her infatuation with him. ‘I’m a professional.’ She made herself have that thought over and over again. It wasn’t working, but if she could convince herself that she wasn’t obsessing over a guy she barely knew, she could get the interview over and done.

“I’ll keep it simple because I imagine there's a bit of a mourning process for you right now,” Keiko said.

Yusuke nodded. “In a way, yes. But it was only recently that I realized Sensei’s methods were wrong. I suppose you could say the mourning started then.”

“What were those methods?”

“It is as he said.” Yusuke sighed. “He would house young artists such as myself and steal our work, claiming it as his own. In my case, he would warn me that with my name on it, the art would not receive the same acclaim as it would with his name.”

“That’s garbage,” Keiko said.

“Indeed. I realize now that he was wrong, and I shouldn’t have played into his ruse.” Yusuke leaned back in his seat. “Even the Sayuri wasn’t his own work.”

“What’s next for you? You mentioned he was housing you. If he goes to prison, do you need a new place to live?”

“I am unsure of my living situation at this juncture,” Yusuke said. “But being out from under a roof belonging to that scoundrel will be most enjoyable.” He swept his blue hair out of his face.

‘Stop it.’ “I am hoping this leads to better things. It helps knowing I will now receive credit for the acclaimed works that I’ve created.” 

**_Madarame confesses to plagiarism scam_ **

_ Famed Japanese artist Ichiryusai Madarame has confessed to stealing his student’s work in a decades-long plagiarism scam. _

_ Considered by many to be a master of many different styles, Madarame now claims that he would take in promising students and claim their art as his own. This comes after he received a calling card from the Phantom Thieves last week. _

_ Yusuke Kitagawa is his most recent student and a second-year student at Kosei High now stuck dealing with the aftermath of his former sensei’s actions.  _

_ “It was only recently that I realized Sensei’s methods were wrong, so I suppose you could say the mourning started then,” Kitagawa said. “He would house young artists such as myself and steal our work, claiming it as his own. In my case, he would warn me that with my name on it, the art would not receive the same acclaim as it would with his name.” _

_ Madarame played on the immaturity of young students to come off as a master of many different styles. Kitagawa claimed that not even the Sayuri is a Madarame painting. _

_ As for Kitagawa, he is now out of a place to live. He intends to stay with friends, in the meantime, while he finds a way to get back on his feet. _

_ “Being out from under a roof belonging to that scoundrel will be most enjoyable,” Kitagawa said. “I am hoping this leads to better things. It helps knowing I will now receive credit for the acclaimed works that I’ve created.” _

_ Kitagawa is credited with creating many of the paintings that were on display at Madarame’s last exhibit. _

===

_ Monday, June 7, Morning _

“Keiko-Senpai!” 

She expected to hear from Kasumi again after her story published but she didn’t expect to get chased down at the school gate. It was far too early in the morning for anyone to have that much energy. 

“What’s up?” She turned around. Sleep was evident in her voice. She hadn’t gotten much of it. 

Kasumi was wearing a wide, friendly smile. “Dad saw your story the second you put it up. You’re going to the TV station for the social studies trip, right?” 

“Oh, that is this week.” Keiko shrugged. “I forgot about that.”

“Dad wants you as a guest on the show again,” Kasumi said. “He’s been checking your website constantly trying to find an excuse.”

“Huh?” Keiko forgot about the website. Makoto mostly handled it. “I’ll be in the neighborhood, so I can be on.”

Kasumi pulled out her phone and sent a text. “Okay! I wish I could be there. I think Akechi will be a guest, too.”

“If you’re trying to get me excited, you’ve done the opposite,” Keiko said. “What does he even do? Like, where does he find time for detective work? He’s on TV every day!”

===

_ Friday, June 10, Morning _

Keiko arrived at the TV station separate from her classmates. She wasn’t as frazzled in preparation for her TV appearance. She knew what to expect and to her own surprise, she trusted Shinichi to not make her look like an asshole. Akechi being on the show was a wildcard, though. It could either go well or horribly. Keiko didn’t expect him to play nice and she wouldn’t back down. 

She was surprised that Akechi wasn’t waiting for her when she got to the green room. Instead, Shinichi welcomed her into his office almost immediately. 

“How’s your morning been?” Keiko was struck by how different Shinichi’s expressions were off-camera as compared to on-camera. His expressions reminded her more of Kasumi than the plastic, overdone excitement he showed on TV. 

“It’s been,” Keiko paused and yawned. “I’m not a morning person. Coffee hasn’t kicked in yet.” She’d become less of a morning person this semester, at least. She never had trouble sleeping before. 

Shinichi must have been a morning person because he had the same energy in his voice Kasumi had every morning. It was exhausting to handle. 

“Well, I’ll keep this brief so you can caffeinate before the show starts. I’ll be asking about the Phantom Thieves, of course.”

Keiko nodded. “I expected as much. I figured Madarame getting a calling card, then confessing just a couple days later was the main reason you asked me on.”

“That’s one of the reasons,” Shinichi said. “I have another request that I’m anticipating you not liking.”

“I’m staying in my school uniform.”

“What?” He shook his head. “No.”

Keiko laughed. “Sorry. The last time someone told me I wouldn’t like their idea, they tried to put me in a cocktail dress and have me seduce someone they needed for a story.”

He gave her an odd look. “Did… did it work?”

“Sadly, yes.” Keiko rolled her eyes. “I’m never doing that again.”

“It does make me feel better about asking you to share the stage with Akechi for part of the show.”

“Nope, that’s much worse. I’d rather get up there naked.” She paused. “I’ll do it, though. Somebody’s gotta be there to push back when he’s talking about things he doesn’t understand.”

“Do you really think he’s that wrong?”

Keiko nodded. “What’s legal and what’s right aren’t always the same thing. He’s just another useless member of law enforcement pushing their own infallibility.”

He grinned. “Save that for the camera.”

Akechi was waiting in the green room when Keiko exited Shinichi’s office.

“Miyahara-san,” He greeted. “It’s good to see you again.”

“Likewise, Akechi-kun.” 

He smiled the fakest smile but Keiko could feel the venom through it. He stood up and went into Shinichi’s office. They’d be on together soon. She sat in the green room playing on her phone in the meantime. Alibaba, or Futaba, as she was apparently named, was trying to feed Keiko funny things to say to Akechi. Most of them were not appropriate, but the things that were weren’t amusing. Keiko respected the effort. A stagehand eventually came and got her. She took a deep breath and walked onto the stage.

“Our first guest today is here for a second time. She runs a high school newspaper that she desperately needs to start charging for. Please welcome Keiko Miyahara!”

Her first thought when she walked out was one of thanks to the school for switching to summer uniforms. The heat coming off the stage lights was slightly more bearable this time, but she was still uncomfortable enough to break a sweat. She also knew to smile at least a little before sitting down. She thought the word ‘confidence’ over and over, knowing Akechi probably had something planned to make her look as bad as she made him look. She sat down in the familiar chair awkwardly angled so she could look at the host and still be facing the camera. 

“Welcome, Keiko-chan.” Shinichi was wearing that stage smile she remembered. 

“Thank you for having me,” she replied.

“I’ll start by saying you must be the luckiest reporter on the planet.” Keiko could have taken that as a slight but it was partially correct. “You have a talent for getting people to talk that wouldn’t otherwise do it. What’s your secret?”

“Social incompetence, Shinichi. That’s the key.” That drew a laugh from both him and the crowd. 

“How could that work in your favor?”

“Easily,” Keiko said. “When I spoke to Madarame, he immediately showed interest while ignoring the more serious journalists. It’s one of those cases where my anxiety works in my favor.”

He raised an eyebrow. “But you don’t seem to struggle when you’re, let’s say, on camera.”

She nodded in agreement. “I’m an incredible actress,” she said with a big smile. “I’ve gotten better about it since the first time. You guys really threw me into the fire.”

“You made quite the impression,” Shinichi said. “It doesn’t come as any surprise to me that you’ve become something of a minor celebrity.” 

She made a show of digging through her pockets for her phone. “Can you call my mom? She disagrees.” She chuckled. “I’m kidding. My mom is very proud.” She paused. “And tired because somebody humored my jokes on a national level, and now she has to hear  _ all _ of them.”

She spotted Ren in the crowd, who she could see making an audible “oof,” earning himself an elbow to the ribs from Ann. 

“Actually, I have a question for you,” Keiko said. “Your daughter helped put together a story for me a couple of weeks ago. Is the nosiness genetic or does she have a special talent?”

Shinichi gleamed with pride and spoke. “I can’t believe,” his words were strangely muffled in Keiko’s ears. It felt like time stopped, or perhaps the universe was unraveling. Things then went back to normal as he finished the word.”-didn’t tell me!” 

Keiko shook her head as if coming out of a daze. “Sorry about that. I think the coffee is wearing off.” ‘Smile, be normal.’ She felt anything but normal. She felt like she’d break down. ‘Bad timing.’ He must’ve picked up that she was feeling off, so he changed subjects. “So, you had an interview with Madarame a few weeks ago and now just this week, you interviewed his former apprentice. How’d you pull that off?”

The world started to feel a bit normal again. “Madarame approached me if you can believe it. He was ignoring the big-time reporters, which I suppose makes sense now. He didn’t expect me to know anything had been up. For the record, I had zero clue anything was happening until Sunday. Kitagawa just happens to be friends with a-” Keiko paused. “Actually, she’s in the crowd with my school today.” She pointed. “Hey, Ann! Are we friends?”

The blonde turned beat red and slumped in her chair, but she muttered yes. Ren sat beside her laughing so hard he could have puked. Kawakami had her head in her hands. 

“Anyway, Kitagawa is a friend of a friend and we’d traded numbers for a story I was working on with Ichiko Ohya.” 

“You’ve really taken to celebrity name-dropping quite well,” Shinichi teased. “You’ve been working with Ohya?”

“She’s given me some career advice, is all,” Keiko decided not to talk about anything involving that story further. 

“Did Kitagawa say anything about the Phantom Thieves?” She kind of wish he’d started with this question, but it was probably his segue into introducing Akechi. 

“He didn’t,” Keiko said. “I didn’t ask, either.”

“You still don’t believe in the Phantom Thieves?” Shinichi raised an eyebrow. “Your school has been the epicenter of their activity, from what we’ve been able to tell.” 

“It’s not that I don’t believe in them,” Keiko said. “I think there’s a certain morality that comes with asking questions at opportune times. Kitagawa is essentially mourning a man who he viewed as a father figure. He doesn’t have time to answer questions about conspiracy theories.” In reality, Keiko didn’t ask because she was starting to suspect the Phantom Thieves were closer than she first thought. Shinichi cut to commercial. Keiko took a few drinks of water. She hadn’t expected it to get heated, but she was proud of her answer.

Shinichi appreciated the answer, as well, and Keiko realized he probably understood what it was like to be bombarded with questions about a painful subject.

The show came back and Shinichi introduced Akechi.

“I thought we’d have both of you up here given what happened the last time Keiko-chan was on,” Shinichi said. “As an added bonus, as Keiko alluded to earlier, her classmates from Shujin Academy are in the audience.”

“It’s great to be here,” Akechi said, composed. “I’m honestly surprised it took this long to get you back on the show.”

Keiko smiled back. She wasn’t lying when she said she could act. “I prefer writing to speaking, so I’ve been a bit preoccupied.”

Akechi didn’t get a retort as Shinichi butted in. “The last time you were on, we discussed the Phantom Thieves and I thought it would be fun to reprise that discussion.” The two kids agreed, and Shinichi continued. “Akechi-kun, do you believe the Phantom Thieves were involved in the Madarame case?”   
He made a noise similar to a tut. It was apparent he was trying to big-league Keiko. “I don’t feel comfortable claiming their existence one way or the other, but I do find them intriguing.”

“This is literally a news show. If they weren’t intriguing, I wouldn’t be here, and Shinichi wouldn’t have asked you about them,” Keiko interrupted before Shinichi could ask a follow-up question.

There were a few laughs from the Shujin Students, particularly from the students that actually knew Keiko. She wasn’t about to play Akechi’s game.

“I suppose you’re correct,” Akechi said, then cleared his throat. “It would be better for me to say that if they are truly heroes of justice, I hope they do exist.” Keiko decided to let him have his dramatic pause. “However, if they do exist, I believe they should stand trial.”

“Trial for what?” Shinichi asked the same question Keiko wanted to ask.

“Is vigilante justice truly what the people of Japan want?” He addressed the crowd more than Shinichi or Keiko. “Do we want everyone, whether they are criminals or not, at the mercy of these shadowy figures who anointed themselves judge, jury, and executioner?”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “You have yet to prove they exist, and you have yet to prove they have done anything beyond leaving a calling card claiming they will steal the hearts of people who, lo and behold, end up being guilty of the crimes they’re confessing.”

“But-”

“Not finished.” Keiko had only stopped to take a breath. “If they do exist, perhaps the police should reach out. If they don’t exist, maybe this is the power of people actually speaking up when someone of notoriety acts out. What’s the phrase the police love to tell children? ‘See something, say something.’ I heard that a lot as a child.” She noticed the nods of the crowd. “If the Thieves don’t exist, then somebody with ample evidence followed the advice they were given as a child. Is it blackmail if somebody  _ knows  _ they’re cooked and turns themselves in before the cops can show up at their door?”

“I-”

“It’s not, Akechi-kun. I know my rights, and considering it’s your  _ job _ , you should know my rights, too.”

“Uh-” Keiko took some pride in making Shinichi stammer. “How about we ask somebody from the crowd?” He pointed at a kid with fluffy black hair and glasses, and Keiko tried to keep her grin to a minimum. “You there! What do you think of the Phantom Thieves?”

Ren stood up, hands in his pockets. “I’d say we’re a school that had two missing students for months who turned up dead. Regardless of whether or not the Phantom Thieves are real, I agree with Keiko-chan. The police can’t be trusted.”

“It is obvious to me that the system has failed your school,” Akechi eyed Ren hard. “I, for one, still hold the belief that law enforcement is for the good of the people.”

“And I hold the belief that you’re just another pretty face,” Keiko said. 

Shinichi motioned that Keiko’s time under the sun was over, and she was to be steered off the stage. 

“Thank you for having me on again,” Keiko bowed graciously towards Shinichi. “Maybe some time, I can write a story about something besides a conspiracy theory, and Akechi and I can have a cordial conversation.”

A stage director gave Keiko a giant friendly smile. “You’re our golden goose. Great job out there.”

She then spent her lunch getting crepes with Kawakami because it was completely normal for a 16-year-old girl to be best friends with one of her teachers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "See Something, Say Something" is an American thing. It's one of the programs that popped up around the same time as DARE. I'm not mocking its message, for what it's worth, but it also statistically doesn't work very well as a program. See Something, Say Something wasn't nearly as harmful as DARE was, so it often gets a pass when it comes to being a waste of taxpayer money.
> 
> Publishing this chapter a day later because I didn't know I was writing a new chapter until I ended up off work earlier than expected yesterday and I couldn't relax, because, ya know, elections and stuff. Looking at the next couple weeks, I should be able to get back to a normal posting schedule soon. I've also settled on a direction for the next arc of Trust Me, I Want Me Dead, Too but until I finish my outline and get organized, there won't be another chapter. I'm still trying to update this one weekly until I get back on track with the other.
> 
> Let me know what you think of this chapter. Thanks for reading!


	7. Killer

_ Saturday, June 11, Morning _

_ “Keiko-chan fucking roasted Akechi…” _

_ “Did you know she could do that? Keiko-chan is scary…” _

_ “Why did that turn me on?” _

Keiko didn’t know about that last one, but the school’s rumor mill had taken off yet again after her television appearance. She wasn’t one to care much for popularity but having her class as the audience had done wonders in getting her known throughout the school. Inui, who she thought she’d burned bridges with weeks ago, was again gushing about her TV appearance and how Shujin was “now home to the antidote that was the plague known as the Detective Prince.” She wanted to vomit when he said that. At least he stopped metaphorically fellating Akechi. 

That was the main bright side to her TV appearance and aired spat with the detective: Public opinion was mostly on her side. There’d been too many scandals involving crumbling public infrastructure as of late, and that included the police’s inability to prevent accidents relating to the mental shutdowns. Anti-establishment and anti-authority was in, and there weren’t many professional careers as anti-authority as independent journalist. 

‘Ohya was right,’ Keiko thought. ‘I might fuck around and become the next Detective Prince.’

That name probably wouldn’t work, as it only stuck on Naoto Shirogane because she looked like a boy, and it stuck on Akechi because he followed Shirogane’s footsteps. Keiko’s path was her own.

Her path, she thought, followed the Phantom Thieves’ example more than Shirogane’s. She saw a lot of merit in people’s evidence for her being the Phantom Thief. ‘If I didn’t know I wasn’t a Phantom Thief, I would accuse myself of being a Phantom Thief.’

She’d been standing at the school gate for too long in hopes of finding Ren that morning. He wasn’t around LeBlanc yesterday afternoon, and she stopped by this morning to find the shop empty, just the ornery old-timer manning the counter.

Sojiro claimed he was hurt when she said she wasn’t there to see him, so of course, she had to take him away from his morning crossword puzzle and order food. He grumbled a complaint that wasn’t sincere and served her food.

Ren might’ve approached Keiko at the school gate if Kasumi hadn’t first. 

“Good morning, Keiko-senpai.” Kasumi greeted her with great enthusiasm. “Or should I refer to you more properly since you’re a superstar?”

Keiko scoffed. “Please don’t. I’m uncomfortable enough being called senpai.”

“But you  _ are _ my senpai,” Kasumi said earnestly. “It would be rude-”

“Just busting your balls, Sumi-chan.” Keiko discovered the nickname worked like a dog whistle telling Kasumi to calm down. 

“Are you busy after school today? Gymnastics practice got canceled, and Ren told me he already has plans with Ryuji-senpai.” 

Keiko didn’t have a last-second story to put together today, so she hadn’t a good reason to say no. It would probably be best for her to get away from the constant stream of work. ‘I should probably drag Makoto with us, too.’ She’d been working herself to death, Keiko knew.

“Sure. Let’s meet at the office after school.”

Kasumi nodded excitedly, and the two turned and walked into the school.

===

_ After School _

Keiko’s office wasn’t empty when she got there after class. Makoto must have waited for her, and she looked tired. Unhinged? 

“Uh, hey Prez,” Keiko greeted. “You doing okay?”

“Close the door,” Makoto said. Her voice was hoarse. 

“Let me text Kasumi. I have plans with her.” Keiko fired off a text letting Kasumi know she had an impromptu meeting, then closed the door. “What happened?”

Makoto set her phone on the desk and hit play on a recording.

“If someone else could help ‘em, we wouldn’t be doin’ stuff as the Phantom Thieves to start with!” The voice was undoubtedly Ryuji Sakamoto.

Ann Takamaki’s voice replied. “So you think it’s true? We’ll be OK if we keep doing this, right?”

Keiko took a seat on the floor since Makoto was in the only chair. “Okay.” She wasn’t prepared for that kind of bombshell today. “There’s our proof.”

“Can you write a story with it?” Makoto asked expectantly. 

Keiko shook her head. “It’s illegal to record anyone without their permission.” 

Makoto frowned. “But we have proof-”

“Illegally obtained proof. But now we can try and corner them.” Keiko took a second to gather her thoughts. “Do you think it’s Ann and Ryuji acting alone?”

“You know who I think their leader is.”

“Yeah.” Keiko took a deep breath and let it out. “He’s always with them. It explains the proximity to Kitagawa, too. Think he’s one of them?”

Makoto nodded. 

“We’ll deal with this bullshit on Monday.” Keiko had long been ready for this week to be over. “Want to hang out with Kasumi and me? She’d be fine with you tagging along.”

“It would help get my mind off things,” Makoto said. “I’ll come with you.”

Keiko took a second to gather herself before shot got up, opened the door, and greeted Kasumi, who was sitting on the ground, leaning against the wall reading a book. 

“What ya readin’?”

“Oh,” Kasumi looked up. “It was sitting on the shelf at LeBlanc. Sojiro told me to read it. He named his cafe after the author.”

The trio exited the school while Kasumi regaled them with tales written by Maurice LeBlanc. She confessed to having a giant crush on the main character, and both Keiko and Makoto looked at each other in agreement. Neither of them had read the book, but they trusted Kasumi’s retelling enough to know the character had attractive qualities.

They journeyed their way to Kichijoji because Makoto and Kasumi agreed they really wanted to play darts, and while Keiko was lukewarm to the idea at best, she didn’t have a better plan. 

“Just don’t put my eye out,” She joked. “I’m a celebrity now. I have to be pretty for my fans.”

Makoto rolled her eyes, but Kasumi took her at face value. “You could pull off the eyepatch look. It’ll help improve your gumshoe appeal.”

Keiko could tell from Makoto’s reaction that she might be regretting tagging along, but at least it was a good distraction from everything else.

A bad distraction from everything was how naturally talented Makoto was with darts.

Kasumi leaned in and quietly asked Keiko if Makoto was always this intense, to which Keiko nodded, then hoped Makoto didn’t hear them. 

Makoto didn’t drop a game the entire time, and none of them were close. She eventually provided an explanation. “My father used to take us shooting when he could. Aiming a gun is much more difficult than throwing a dart.”

Kasumi again leaned into Keiko. “Was she always this scary?”

Keiko shook her head. “It’s a recent development. You should see her naked.”

“I will murder you.” The banter continued as they left the Penguin Sniper.

Keiko saw a familiar head of brown hair standing near the entrance and backed off. “Hey, you guys go ahead…” she trailed off as it was too late. Akechi had noticed her.

‘Fuck this, fuck me, fuck him, fuck.’ Keiko’s thoughts were a flurry of swears. ‘I’m trying to have fucking fun with my friends. Why does this stupid fucking fuck have to be here?’

“Keiko-san! Funny I’d run into you here.” Akechi greeted her. Kasumi and Makoto turned around, Makoto immediately putting on a fake happy face and Kasumi not knowing any better.

Makoto replied before Keiko could. “Akechi-kun, I almost didn’t recognize you outside of the station.” 

“It does seem I spend the majority of my time there, but I do have hobbies.” Keiko had to avoid rolling her eyes when he spoke. He was such a shitty actor. 

“How’s my sister doing?” Makoto asked, and Keiko could tell this was out of actual curiosity. Makoto expressed concerns often about Sae’s absence from home. “I don’t see much of her these days.”

“She’s busy as always. I’m always getting on her to loosen up, but you know how she is.” He brushed his hair to the side in an obviously telegraphed way. Akechi wasn’t nearly attractive enough to be this arrogant. “It’s good I ran into you, though.” He directed this at Keiko. “I’ve been looking further into the Phantom Thieves, and I was wondering if you’d be willing to share some information. I could provide some of what I’ve found in return.”

“I don’t think you’ll have anything of use to me,” Keiko said, trying to play it cool. “I don’t mean that as an insult, but the more I look into this, the less I believe they exist. If they do exist, I believe them to be some kind of hackers.”

Akechi raised an eyebrow, but Keiko continued before he could ask a question.

“I see more merit in the blackmail route.”

He nodded in agreement. “I apologize if it feels like I’m prying. Phantom thieves that use their calling cards and succeed in their crime… as the so-called Charismatic Detective, it’d be hard for me not to see them as my rival.”

Keiko would have responded if Makoto hadn’t first. “You have such high self-esteem. So the Phantom Thieves are evil, and you are just?”

“Compared to people who manipulate others’ hearts as they see fit, I believe I’m on the side of justice. Don’t you think the same about yourself, too?”

Akechi had a point. If Keiko and Makoto didn’t feel they were just in their pursuit, there wouldn’t be a pursuit.

“We believe justice can be pursued in more than one way,” Makoto said. Keiko wouldn’t be surprised if she were gritting her teeth. “There cannot be justice without truth.”

Keiko rolled her eyes and was about to make fun of Makoto for saying something so utterly campy, but Akechi abruptly ended the conversation.

“I don’t think I expected to get much more out of a conversation. Thank you. You’ve given me a lot to think about.” He then took his leave, and the girls went the other direction. They still had some time to kill before any of them had to be home, so they stopped at a cafe for coffee that wasn’t nearly as good as LeBlanc. 

The three took a seat on the patio of the stylish black-stone cafe with their drinks. Kasumi had gotten something sweet while Makoto went for tea. Keiko ordered black coffee that wasn’t bitter enough for her liking. 

“You really dislike Akechi-kun,” Kasumi said as if trying to convince herself that’s the truth. “I thought you were just playing that up for TV.”

Keiko shook her head. “I hated him long before I ever met him. Law enforcement and I don’t agree on much.”

Makoto disagreed. “That’s not right. You just disagree on their methods.”

“Is it really disagreeing if I don’t really have a better solution?” Keiko took a sip of what she thought of as ‘babby’s first coffee.’ “I’m pretty sure I’m just whining.”

“You bring up valid points, though,” Kasumi said. She seemed happy with her drink. “My dad will bring up things you’ve mentioned on his show. He really respects you.”

“Woo! I radicalized Sumi-chan’s dad!” Keiko’s cheer was a bit louder than she intended and earned her a glare from Makoto. “Whoops.”

Kasumi laughed. “It’s good to see you have a handler. Dad always wonders how they keep you reigned in at school.”

“Did you tell him it’s because pretty much everyone ignores me? It’s the best.” Keiko liked being able to operate under the radar. “That’s why this celebrity thing is way out there.” She’d started making an effort to look even more plain since she began making TV appearances. It helped with not being recognized. She kept her hair down and straight and rarely took off her glasses. Makeup stopped being a thing. She’d still dress up if she knew she had somewhere important to be, but flying under the radar was more important to her than celebrity. “I’ve been trying to play up the whole ‘plain’ thing.”

“Yeah. We’ve all noticed,” Makoto said. “It’s painfully ineffective.”

“What!?” Keiko nearly performed a spit take.

Kasumi laughed and nodded in agreement. “Itsuki-kun asked me if I could get you to step on him.”

“What?” Makoto and Keiko questioned in unison. They shared a glance.

Keiko shook her head. “I don’t even know how to respond to that.”

“Why would he want anyone to step on-”

“You’re better off not know, Kasumi.” Makoto sighed. “We’re all better off not knowing.”

“The world is a dark and scary place, Sumi-chan.” Keiko would have found this hilarious if it happened to anyone else. “Hey, Makoto.”

“Yes?”

“Would you step on-”

“You’re walking a thin line, Miyahara.”

All three were about to go their own way after their coffee, but Makoto stuck around after Kasumi left.

“We should probably talk about our findings earlier while it’s fresh.”

“Your findings, you mean,” Keiko said. “I really can’t do much with an illegally obtained recording.”

“Fine. My findings,” Makoto sighed. “My place or yours?”

“Yours.” Keiko shuttered. “Who knows what my parents are up to?”

Makoto’s place was closer, anyway.

===

_ Evening _

Makoto returned home to find a note from Sae, letting her know she wouldn’t be home that night. She didn’t have to tell Keiko that being alone at night bothered her. Keiko could tell from the sad look on her face as she read the note.

“It’s a Saturday,” Makoto muttered. “She’s seriously working overnight on a Saturday.”

Keiko could tell that wasn’t meant to be loud enough for her to hear. She’d been sitting on the couch while Makoto was in the kitchen about 12 feet away. 

“Is Sae working overnight?”

“Oh!” Makoto fixed her posture and tried to look less downtrodden. “Sis won’t be home tonight. I guess I’m going to be alone again.”

“Do you want me to stay over?” Keiko didn’t expect a yes, but Makoto replied far too quickly.

“Yes, please.” Makoto looked down, her cheeks getting some color. “I hate staying here alone.” 

Keiko pulled out her phone and shot her mom a text.

**Keiko:** Staying at Makoto’s tonight, if that’s okay

**Mom:** okay wear protection

**Keiko:** i’m a girl

**Keiko:** also what

Makoto must’ve noticed Keiko’s embarrassment because she asked what happened. Keiko showed Makoto the text thread.

She rolled her eyes and chuckled. “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Keiko raised an eyebrow.

Makoto didn’t respond immediately, instead opting to stare at Keiko incredulously. “Do I really need to spell this out? You check me out every chance you get.”

“That’s not true!”

Makoto sighed. “Plus, you actively flirt with me constantly.”

“Oh, please.” Keiko made a ‘pssh’ noise. “You know I’m just trying to tease you.”

She picked up the TV remote and flicked on the TV. Makoto flipped through channels instead of responding outright to Keiko, who decided to let it be. The note from her sister soured Makoto’s mood too quickly.

“I’m sorry,” Keiko said. Makoto stopped flipping through channels on some boring looking documentary. 

“Huh? Oh, I wasn’t mad.” Makoto looked over absent-mindedly. “Not at you, at least. I’ve learned to live with the constant teasing. In fact, you could say I’ve learned to enjoy it.”

“Aw! Have I grown on you that much?”

“You wouldn’t be Keiko without the constant inappropriate comments,” Makoto said. 

“That’s-” Keiko would have argued, but she could see Makoto’s train of thought. “Good point.”

“We need to talk about the Phantom Thieves.”

Keiko didn’t  _ want _ to talk about the Phantom Thieves, but she could take one for the team. “On one condition.”

“What’s that?” It’d been a joint investigation up to this point. Makoto probably wasn’t expecting to have to barter.

“After we figure out how we’re going to handle this, you have to talk to me about whatever’s going on with your sister.”

Makoto started to protest, but Keiko interrupted her.

“I know it’s bothering you.” She leaned forward in her seat and looked directly at Makoto, blocking out the other distractions in the room. “You spend so much time helping me with my bullshit. I owe it to you.”

Makoto sighed and relented. “Fine. After we talk about the Thieves.” They moved to the kitchen table, where Makoto placed a notebook for them to keep track of their discoveries. She also put on coffee. It would probably be a long night. 

“Okay. Here’s what we know: Ryuji Sakamoto and Ann Takamaki are Phantom Thieves.”

Makoto nodded and jotted down both names.

“Ren is probably their leader.”

She agreed and again wrote down his name, this time underlining it.

“The cat is probably involved, too.” Keiko struggled to keep a straight face when Makoto gave her a stern look and started laughing. “Sorry, I thought that would be funny.”

Makoto cleared her throat and wrote down ‘cat’s involvement?’ “We shouldn’t joke around right now.”

“I know that sounds stupid, but he really does take that cat everywhere.”

She got up to grab a fill a couple of coffee cups from the pot. “Do you seriously think the cat has any involvement?”

“Makoto, I swear on my life, he talks to that fucking cat.” Keiko couldn’t believe the words leaving her own mouth.

“I talk to my stuffed Buchi-kun doll! That doesn’t mean he’s part of a conspiracy to take over the school!”

Keiko laughed and laughed. “You’re seriously the most adorable person. You need to find a boyfriend before I get the wrong idea.”

“Sae would kill me.” It would seem Makoto took Keiko a little more seriously than she anticipated. “Uh, sorry. We can talk about that after.”

“Okay, back on topic.” It took Keiko a short time to regain her thoughts. “We have the recording, but they didn’t give consent to be recorded.”

“I didn’t know we needed consent.”

“You don’t. You’re not a journalist.” Keiko ignored the fact that she’d been working for the student newspaper for over a month now. “I do, though. If I’m going to go public with any information like this, I need to verify that all parties involved in the story know. They don’t seem like the type to sue, but this also leads us to another question.”

Makoto leaned forward. “Do we want to out them?”

“Exactly.” Keiko sighed. “Ultimately, we don’t have any proof that what they’re doing is wrong, nor do we have any proof that they’re doing anything at all.”

“We shouldn’t view this as taking sides.”

“And we aren’t. Ren is a good friend of mine, but if it turns out he’s a killer, that’s what he is.”

“Do you think he’s a killer?”

“ _ Fuck _ no. Killer in bed, maybe,” Keiko chuckled to herself.

“Gro-”

“Don’t even tell me you haven’t thought about it,” Keiko said. “There isn’t a woman in that school that hasn’t.”

Makoto looked into her coffee before taking a drink of it. This wasn’t like LeBlanc’s coffee, where it was necessary to savor it. It was the cheapest store-brand they could get. “Yeah…”

“Think he’s doin’ it with Ann?”

Makoto’s expression soured, but it softened like she realized she was in a safe place to talk. “I don’t have a doubt in my mind.”

“We should ask about it,” Keiko said. “Have we decided we aren’t outing them?”

“I don’t think we should out them,” Makoto said. “But I’d like to talk to them, anyway. There’s a rumor going around school about a gang in Shibuya.”

“So, we’re blackmailing them.” Keiko scoffed.

“It’s not blackmail!” Makoto looked frazzled. “It’s just-” she sighed. “I know at least a few students have gotten scammed by them, and a couple others were forced to join. You’ve told me before to never do anything for free. Shouldn’t our silence have a price?”

“Fuck!” Keiko jokingly wiped her forehead. “Keep talking like that, and you’re gonna give a woman the wrong idea.”

Makoto rolled her eyes. “Is that you agreeing with me?”

“Abso-fucking-lutely.” Keiko pulled the notebook away from Makoto and scribbled ‘Monday at lunch’ on it. “We confront Ren there. Now, let’s move to the couch and grab some tissues.”

“What’ll I need the tissues for?”

“I don’t know,” Keiko shrugged. “You seemed pretty upset earlier. I’m expecting you to cry when you talk about your sister.”

“Oh.” Makoto paused. “Now I feel self-conscious.”

“Don’t. You won’t be any more of a mess than I was after I walked in on my parents,” Keiko said. “That took me out of action for weeks.”

“Heh.” Makoto giggled. “Action.”

“Stoooooop,” Keiko said, covering her face. 

They laughed for a little bit longer, but not too long. Makoto’s innuendo game was lacking.

The tone changed when Keiko tried to shift gears. “Can you please just tell me why you hate your sister? I’m not used to being the one getting roasted.”

“I don’t hate my sister,” Makoto said. “She’s just frustrating right now.”

“I only know a little bit of it,” Keiko said. “You’ll have to fill me in.”

Makoto nodded and started with the story. “You know that my sister basically raised me. Mom died when we were little, and dad died before I was in middle school. Sae was still in high school.”

“You’ve mentioned your dad before, but you’ve never said anything about your mom.” Keiko would have remembered.

“I don’t remember her very well,” Makoto admitted. “I’ve been told we’re a lot alike, but I think that’s just their old friends reminiscing.”

“You’re definitely intense,” Keiko said. “Given what I know of Sae, that could be an inherited trait.”

“It certainly didn’t come from dad,” Makoto said with a nostalgic gleam in her eye. “He relied on Sae and me to keep him in line after mom died. He was a goofball.” The sparkle was gone. “He wouldn’t talk much about mom, though. Too many painful memories, I think.”

“Can’t say I blame him,” Keiko said. “Kasumi is that way.”

“It might be a bit soon to ask her about her sister,” Makoto replied, then shifted back towards her mother. “Mom used to call me a little thief because Sae and I played cops and robbers all the time.”

“You? A thief?” Keiko scoffed. “That’s ridiculous.”

“Apparently not as ridiculous as you’d think,” Makoto said with a smile. “That’s how I got Buchi-kun. I stole him from Sae. She just wasn’t mean enough to take him back.”

“You two must’ve been cute kids.”

“You still think I’m cute.” Makoto stood up and started walking in the direction of her room.

Keiko laughed. “Fair.” 

“I’m going to get changed,” she said, stretching. They were both in their school uniforms. “I’ll lay some clothes out for you, too.”

“I’d appreciate that,” Keiko said. Her school clothes usually grew uncomfortable after a couple hours of being out of school.

She pulled out her phone while she waited for Makoto to come back to check her texts.

**Alibaba:** there’s a lot of people at your house

**SendNews:** do I need to run home again

**Alibaba:** no, it’s a sex party

**SendNews:** please be kidding

**Alibaba:** I can pretend I’m kidding if you’d like

**SendNews:** wait how do you know it’s a sex party

**Alibaba:** Alibaba knows all and sees all. Also I snuck a microphone onto a piece of mail so I didn’t accidentally make you walk in on your parents doing it again

**SendNews:** Alibaba

**SendNews:** you can’t do that

**Alibaba:** ill be sad if anything happens to you

**SendNews:** >.> that doesn’t make it okay.

**SendNews:** but I understand

**Alibaba:** I knew you’d see it my way

Keiko made a frustrated sound as Makoto came back into the room wearing an outfit similar to what she’d wear to the gym. Shorts, an old ratty t-shirt with no sleeves and massive armholes, and shockingly, no headband. The headband barely changed anything about her hair, but it was still strange to see her without it. She was also carrying a stuffed panda that must’ve been Buchi-kun.

“Do me a favor and go put more clothes on,” Keiko joked. “You’re too intimidating with the guns showing.”

Makoto rolled her eyes. “You’re ridiculous.” 

“At least you brought Buchi-kun with you,” Keiko said. “That takes away some of the intimidation.”

“Isn’t he so cute!?”

It was Keiko’s turn to roll her eyes. “We were talking about Sae. You stole Buchi-kun from her.”

Makoto sighed. “She was in that phase where she was too much of an adult for stuffed animals, or at least that’s what dad told me. I secretly think she wanted to give him to me without looking weak. She’s still like that.”

“Being a female prosecutor will do that to you,” Keiko said. “Any male-dominated profession. Ohya told me journalism is the same way.”

Makoto nodded. “She’s had to work so hard to get where she is. She passed the bar when she was still in high school.”

“Holy shit.”

“I know,” Makoto said. “And she was raising me. That was just after our dad died.”

“No wonder she’s surly.” Passing the bar exam was impressive for anyone, regardless of age. To do it in high school? That was unheard of.

“She’s not always that way.” Makoto was sitting on the other side of the couch, hugging the panda. “It’s just lately. She’s become so obsessed with winning. That wasn’t what it was about when she started.”

Keiko raised an eyebrow. “What was it about, then?”

“Justice, I guess. For our father.” Makoto paused as if expecting Keiko to say anything, but she was too busy picking at her nail beds. “Dad was a good man. I think part of everything for her is the belief that he deserved two successful daughters. Then there’s the part where the man that killed him never got convicted.”

“How!?” Keiko asked before she could think. “Sorry. You don’t have to go into that detail if you don’t want to.”

“She-” Makoto changed her cadence a little, perhaps to prevent herself from crying. “The man that ran dad over had a psychotic break. He had no prior record, no drugs in his system, nothing. They couldn’t pin down what happened. In the end, it was declared an accident. The man went free.”

“Your sister wants to make sure that never happens again.” That added up for Keiko.

Makoto must’ve agreed. “She’s lost sight of what she’s there for. She’s a prosecutor, but her job isn’t just to prove guilt within the law. It’s to provide justice. Anyone who crosses her path who doesn’t get prosecuted is considered a failure.”

Keiko nodded. “Japan has a 99% prosecution rate.”

“And don’t we have a friend who’s a victim?” Makoto raised an eyebrow.

Keiko thought for a minute. “Ren.” The room remained silent for a moment before Keiko decided to change into the shorts, and baggy t-shirt Makoto left out for her. When she came back, Makoto was in better spirits.

“The last time I spoke to Sae, she called me useless,” Makoto spoke with some determination. “I’m determined to prove that she’s wrong.”

“You’re far from useless, Makoto,” Keiko said, taking a set next to her. She wrapped her in a quick side hug. “I wouldn’t have made it this far without you.”

“I know.” Keiko tried to stifle a laugh. “I’m just so angry with Sae. I wish I knew how to get back at her.”

Keiko looked around the room. She’d had an idea earlier in the night that she thought she’d avoid mentioning, but things had gotten tenser than she expected.

“Remember the last time I was here, and we found that bottle in the cabinet?” Keiko couldn’t hide the mischief in her eyes.

Expecting admonishment, Keiko was shocked when Makoto’s red eyes returned that mischief. “I do.” She stood up quickly and excitedly and pulled a chair up to the cabinet above the fridge.

Keiko wolf-whistled as Makoto stretched to reach the cabinet, and her shirt rode up.

“Hush!” Makoto said from across the room, grabbing the glass bottle. It had a black label with white cursive writing and contained an amber-brown liquid. Makoto carefully set it down on the counter and climbed down. She then opened the cabinet and grabbed two glasses.

“You have any soda? I’ve watched my dad choke this stuff down before. I don’t think drinking it straight will end well for either of us.” Keiko’s father wasn’t an alcoholic, as far as she knew, but family gatherings always required a little help from Uncle Jack.

Makoto pulled out a couple cans of zero-calorie cola from the fridge. “That work?”

“It does,” Keiko said, secretly judging her for drinking something as gross as diet soda. 

Makoto poured some whiskey into each glass, which looked like a small amount but what Keiko knew was probably too much. They then filled the rest of the glasses with the soda.

“You ready?” Keiko held up her glass, and Makoto did the same, clinking them together. They both took a drink.

Keiko nearly coughed, but she held herself together. The cola helped drown out the spice and burn from the whiskey.

Makoto didn’t fare nearly as well, but she didn’t spit out her drink, which Keiko took as a victory. 

“Goodness!” Makoto made a face.

“How was it?”

“It didn’t taste bad…” Makoto tried to gather her thoughts. “It’s spicy. Kind of bitter? But it’s also smooth. Had I known what to expect, I don’t think I’d have reacted so poorly.”

Keiko agreed. She’d never had whiskey, but the taste wasn’t too overbearing. It was harder to get over the fact that they absolutely, 100% shouldn’t be doing this than it was to get over the taste. 

“I’ll at least finish this drink,” Makoto said. “I’ll see how I feel after it.”

“I have no idea how alcohol affects me. I’m in the same boat, partner.”

They both felt fine after the first drink, so they went for a second. The second didn’t do much either, so they went for a third. By then, both were feeling good enough that Keiko suggested they play a game instead of mindlessly watching TV. 

“Don’t they specifically say to avoid drinking games?” 

“Who’s they? You mean those afterschool specials?” Keiko laughed. “Those same programs told me people were just going to come up and hand me drugs. Sadly, that’s never happened.”

Makoto started to laugh but let out a small burp instead. “Fine, we’ll play a game.”

“Never have I ever?”

Makoto looked concerned.“Never have you ever what?”

“No, like that’s the game,” Keiko said. “It’s called Never Have I Ever. I say something I’ve never done, and if you’ve done it, you drink. If you haven’t done it, I drink.”

“This seems like a losing proposition for you.” The concerned look never left Makoto’s face.

“Meh. How sheltered could you possibly be?” 

“You go first,” Makoto said.

“Okay. Hmm.” Keiko thought for a minute. “Never have I ever got naked in front of my friend.”

Makoto rolled her eyes and took a drink. “That was cheap. It’s not my fault you’re a never-nude.”

“I’m not a never-nude!”

“Whatever,” Makoto said, chuckling. “Never have I ever gotten in trouble at school.”

Keiko took a drink. “That’s not fair at all. You’re little miss perfect.”

“I’m not little miss perfect! If anybody knows that, it’s you!”

Keiko found Makoto’s frustration adorable, but she thought that might be the liquor talking. She had to be careful before the liquor started calling the shots. “Never have I ever broken a bone.”

Makoto didn’t drink. “Never have. I’ve had some bad sprains, though.”

“I wasn’t a very active person until recently,” Keiko said. “So, if I break a bone, it’s your fault.”

“I can tell, though,” Makoto said. “That you’ve been working out, I mean.” 

Keiko blushed. “Stop.”

“I’m serious! You’re definitely showing the beginner’s gains.” Keiko was wholly uncomfortable being on this end of the teasing, but this didn’t feel like teasing. “It’s crazy that you don’t notice the attention you’ve been getting lately.”

“It’s just not something I think about,” Keiko said. “I’m too busy for boys.”

“Ha! I can drink to that,” Makoto said, and both took a drink. “You want another?”

Keiko’s cup was running low, so she agreed to have another drink. This required Makoto to climb back onto the chair and grab the bottle from behind the mixer. She made sure to put the bottle back every time, figuring the extra effort needed to obtain a drink would prevent them from drinking too much.

“Never have I ever been on TV,” Makoto said on the return, setting Keiko’s drink down in front of her.

“Why are you so good at this?” Keiko gave a frustrated groan as she downed another drink.

“Somebody taught me to be inquisitive and asked questions,” Makoto teased back. “Can’t remember who.”

“You little shit,” Keiko grumbled. “Never have I ever eaten seafood.”

“What?” Makoto took a drink. “How?”

“I’m severely allergic to shellfish and a few other kinds of fish,” Keiko said. “I can’t go to certain restaurants or eat seafood because of it. I’m sure it’s usually safe, but I refuse to take that chance.”

“What happens when you eat it?”

“No clue, but my mom swells up like a pufferfish and she’ll get these lumps everywhere.” Keiko shuttered. “I try and avoid anything that might lead to that.”

“That’s terrifying.” Makoto took another drink absentmindedly then spoke her turn. “Never have I ever kissed a boy.”

Keiko shook her head. “Never have. Probably never will.”

“Same.” 

Keiko felt Makoto’s red eyes meet hers. It was unnerving. “What’s your excuse?”

“Don’t have one.” Makoto sighed. “I scare everyone away.”

“Hey, that was gonna be my excuse. It’s why we make a great pair.”

“The world’s scariest high school girls,” Makoto said with a goofy, slightly out of control laugh. Keiko stood up and took their cups to the sink to rinse them out, then placed them in the dishwasher. “Maybe Ren will be so impressed you figured out their identities, he’ll sweep you off your feet.”

Makoto gave a look back that Keiko couldn’t read. It wasn’t the kind of look she’d get from Makoto sober. “Yeah. Maybe that’ll happen.”

Keiko didn’t think Makoto sounded too thrilled at the prospect.

===

_ Monday, June 13, After School _

Keiko waited outside Kawakami’s room for class to get dismissed. Ren nearly barrelled through her on his way out the door. He caught her before she could fall. ‘The smooth bastard,’ Keiko thought. 

“Thanks,” Keiko said, getting her legs back under her. “I was actually looking for you. Think you could come to the Student Council room with me?”

“Uh,” Ren gave her an odd look. “Yeah. That’s fine.” They started walking, making small talk on the way. “Sorry I haven’t been around lately. I picked up a couple part-time jobs so I could stop mooching off the old man.”

Keiko couldn’t imagine he had time to be a Phantom Thief if that were the case. “It’s fine.” She tried to return a smile, but she couldn’t help but feel like she was betraying a friend. “Sumi-chan and I have lived through your absence.”

“She was telling me,” Ren said. “I ran into her in Kichijoji the other day. Apparently, Makoto is some kind of darts master, and Kasumi wants to catch up.”

“That sounds like her,” Keiko said as they approached the room. Makoto was already sitting at the desk with her hands folded on the table, the phone already sitting out.

“Hello, Amamiya-kun.” Keiko had to stifle a laugh because Makoto definitely sounded like a yakuza movie villain.

“Makoto-senpai, you know you can just call me Ren.” He looked around the room a bit shiftily, especially after Keiko closed the door.

“We’ve got something you’ll want to hear.” Keiko could tell he immediately started looking for a way out.

He didn’t escape before Makoto hit play on the recording.

“If someone else could help ‘em, we wouldn’t be doin’ stuff as the Phantom Thieves to start with!” Ren groaned when he heard the unmistakable voice of Ryuji Sakamoto. 

He groaned again when he heard Ann’s voice. “So you think it’s true? We’ll be OK if we keep doing this, right?”

“We have reason to believe that you three are the Phantom Thieves,” Keiko said, placing her palms on the table. 

“So, what if we are?” She hadn’t seen this side of Ren before. At least, she hadn’t seen that side directed at her.

“I don’t want to report you,” Keiko said. “I don’t even want to write about you anymore.” 

“Then what do you even want?” He sounded irritated.

“To be right, mostly,” Keiko said, earning a jab to the ribs from Makoto.

“There’s a gang running around Shibuya trying to scam students,” Makoto said. “Prove your justice to us by taking down their ring leader.”

“Do you have a name?”

Makoto was about to speak, but Keiko interrupted her. “I can get you one.”

“I do this, and you won’t turn us in?”

“Well,  _ I _ wasn’t going to turn you in regardless because I’m not a fucking narc.” Keiko chuckled. “Makoto, on the other hand-”

“You’re really selling me out like this?” Makoto yelled back. “You bitch!”

“Hey!” Ren shouted over their argument. “I’ll do it. Jesus.”

“We didn’t want to blackmail you,” Keiko said. “But we didn’t know what else to do.”

“You could have found out the guy’s name and made a request on the website like literally everyone else has done,” Ren said, his tone much lighter. “But this works, too. I think I can make this work.”

“You aren’t mad at us?” Keiko was worried she’d lose a friend over this.

Ren shrugged. “We can talk later. I didn’t trust you with something important, and you didn’t trust me with something important. I’m frustrated, but we’re on even ground.” 

“You sound so much like the old man right now that I want to vomit,” Keiko said, making a gagging motion.

“You vomited enough yesterday, thank you very much,” Makoto said.

Ren looked intrigued. “Uh, since I’m being held hostage anyway, storytime?” 

Keiko and Makoto looked at each other and shrugged. They told the story of Saturday night, leaving out the fact that they talked about him quite a bit, unrelated to the Phantom Thieves. They also left out the fact that they shared a bed.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter came together so quickly! I got off work at 4 and started writing immediately. This chapter actually moves at a slower pace than the rest of the story because there's a lot I wanted to get to with Makoto before starting Kaneshiro's arc.
> 
> I initially planned to have Makoto and Keiko have some sort of blowup during the scene at the apartment, but the further I got into writing it, the more I felt I couldn't do it. This just felt like the right time for Keiko to find out. 
> 
> I'm very excited with how this chapter turned out. Thanks for reading!


	8. What You're Told

_ Wednesday, June 14, After School _

Keiko was having better luck finding a student involved in the Shibuya gang than the Phantom Thieves, to nobody’s surprise. She tracked down Takahase at lunch, inadvertently getting his hopes up. He thought she was asking him out.

Keiko and Makoto made plans to meet with the Phantom Thieves on the school’s rooftop after school.

“Did you get a name?” Makoto couldn’t wait for Ren or the other Thieves to get there.

Keiko shook her head. “No, but I have a lead. Takahase only referred to him as boss.”

Makoto crossed her arms and gave a look that typically would have made Keiko wilt. “That doesn’t sound like much of a lead.”

“We know for sure that he’s based out of Shibuya,” Keiko said. “That’s a good start.”

“I fail to see how that’s a good start. Shibuya is one of the most populous places in the world. Of course, there’s a crime boss based there.” Makoto shot back. “What’s next? Are you going to tell me your big lead is a mafia operating out of an Italian restaurant in Brooklyn?”

“I-” Keiko blinked in visible confusion. “Movie reference?”

“I’m going to strap you to a chair and force you to watch every mafia movie I can find,” Makoto said, shaking her head. 

“Sounds kinky,” Keiko replied. “Can we start with My Cousin Vinny?”

“That’s not a mafia movie!” Keiko had pressed the movie button, and Makoto was about to let her have it. “Just because Joe Pesci starred doesn’t make it a mob movie-”

The end of her statement was cut off when Ren, Ann, Ryuji, and Yusuke made it to the rooftop. 

“Everything good up here?” Ren wore a stupid crooked grin that made both girls feel self-conscious.

Makoto was all business, mostly because she wasn’t sure Keiko and Ren could be around each other without the conversation devolving into complete irrelevance because if any two people on the planet could derail an investigation, it would be a journalist and a gentleman thief. Makoto had yet to deal with the two of them together, but she expected it to try her patience to its breaking point. 

“We’re discussing a potential lead,” Makoto said in a tone that probably wouldn’t endear her to anyone.

“Got a name?” Ren asked with a raised eyebrow and a glance towards Ryuji.

“Not yet, but Takahase said he operates out of Shibuya,” Keiko said before Makoto could interrupt her again.

“No shit,” Ryuji said. “What’s next? Gonna tell us he hangs out in a strip club?”

Makoto tutted. “There’s no need to be rude.”

Keiko frowned. “Sorry about her,” she said to the Phantom Thieves. “She’s deadset on being a hardass.”

“Am not!”

“You just made fun of me for the same thing Sakamoto did and then acted like he was being rude.”

“I’m your friend!” Makoto scoffed. “I can make fun of you if I want to.”

“I like to think we’re all friends here,” Yusuke said, glancing towards Ann. “At least, Ann and I have no reasons to hold ill will for either of you. And Ren speaks highly of both of you.”

There was a loud meowing coming from Morgana’s bag. Ren chuckled, and Ryuji looked furious. “Morgana agrees with Yusuke.”

“Wait.” Makoto stopped her previous thought. “Is Morgana actually a Phantom Thief?”

“Yup!” Ren said with a grin.

“Ha! Fuck you, Makoto!” Keiko let out a belly laugh and started doing a little victory dance. “I  _ told _ you the cat was in on it.”

Makoto rolled her eyes, and Keiko could tell she was losing the battle in trying to keep the conversation sober. “You were being sarcastic when you said that.”

“I was not being-”

“No offense, but this is kind of a serious situation,” Ren interrupted. 

Makoto and Keiko looked at each other and nodded. “Truce,” Makoto said.

“For now.” 

Makoto made an exasperated noise that drew laughs from everyone else, including the cat, who apparently knew exactly what was going on.

“I’m going to meet Ohya,” Keiko said. “But she can’t meet until Saturday.”

Ren and Makoto both started speaking at the same time, then looked at each other. “You first,” Ren said.

Makoto’s tone was stern, and Keiko knew there was no wriggling away. “I am not allowing you to go to Shinjuku by yourself again.”

“Great minds,” Ren said. “I’ll go with you. It’ll be good to see Lala-chan outside of work.”

“You work at a bar?” Makoto shot Ren an accusatory glance.

Ren shrugged. “I don’t serve anything alcoholic if that’s your question. I also work at a 7-11 and a flower shop. That nefarious enough for you?”

“Ugh. You work for Hanasaki?”

Ren gave Keiko a questioning look. “She’s really nice.”

_ “Too _ nice, if you ask me,” Keiko said. “I bet she knows where the bodies are buried.

“I’ll ask her next time I work-”

“How in the hell do you juggle everything?” Makoto interrupted the nonsense about a flower shop.

“What’s a Joker that can’t juggle?”

Ann’s eyes rolled so hard they nearly left her head, while Makoto and Keiko shared worrying looks.

Ryuji and Yusuke looked like they were about to piss themselves laughing. Ren wore a proud grin like he’d just aced an exam. 

“I have no idea why that’s funny, but given the only woman in your group absolutely despises you for making that joke, I’m going to assume it wasn’t funny,” Makoto said. “I think we’re done here.”

Keiko agreed, and they started heading towards the rooftop door. Ann caught up with them as they reached the third floor.

She gave a long, exasperated sigh. “I need a break from the boys.”

“You want to hang out with us?” Keiko looked at Makoto. They were planning on going to the gym as they usually did after school.

“She can come along if she’d like,” Makoto said, but her tone warned Keiko that Ann probably wouldn’t want to be there.

“Sure!” Ann chirped. “Ever since Shiho, I-”

Makoto’s expression softened. “I understand. You can come with us, but we’re actually going to the gym in Shibuya. I’m supposed to be training Keiko so she can at least run away properly.”

“Excuse you. I beat up a guy last week!”

“You cheap shotted him when he went after Kasumi,” Makoto said. “You were lucky to get away.”

“Ugh!” Keiko said, looking to Ann. “She never ever lets me look cool. It’s so stupid.”

Ann didn’t really know how to respond as they made it to the locker room, allowing her to pick up her gym clothes. 

“I don’t know anything!” They heard a small voice around the corner as they entered the room. Makoto held the other two back. “I barely talk to him!”

It wasn’t a voice any of them were familiar with, but they knew the one that hissed back. 

“He’s mine, and you can’t have him!” Hikari Shimizu had a poor first year by her blazer’s lapels, holding her against the wall.

“I don’t talk to him!” The first year’s voice was frantic as her eyes shifted, searching for a way out. She tried to swing her legs but missed the mark. Hikari wasn’t a necessarily large person, but the first year was undersized. Makoto peered around the corner and noticed a pair of broken glasses that appeared to have skidded across the floor. By then, Hikari had reared back a poorly formed fist.

“Shimizu!” Makoto shouted. “What do you think you’re doing?”

She immediately dropped the first year, who scrambled to Makoto’s side. She choked back sobs but couldn’t hold them, immediately overcome by tears. 

“She was talking to my boyfriend!” Hikari shouted back. “She was trying to take him from me.”

“I-” The first year stammered.

“You don’t need to defend yourself.” Ann comforted the first-year, pulling her to the side, away from the action. 

“If you’re so worried about a first-year stealing your boyfriend, that sounds like a problem with him, not her,” Keiko said. 

Hikari marched over to try and intimidate Keiko, but Makoto stepped between them and rolled up her sleeves. “Got something to say?”

Hikari stammered and backed off. “N-n-no. I’ll-” She looked Makoto up and down. “I’ll get going now.” She sprinted off, away from Makoto, specifically.

“Are you okay?” Ann spoke to the still crying first-year.

The girl nodded. “Thank you, senpais. I’m going to-”

“We’ll walk you out,” Makoto said. “I don’t think we’ve met.” Makoto introduced herself, Keiko and Ann, in that order.

They had approached the school gate by the time the first-year was in a good enough place to give her name. 

“Kaori Fujioka,” she said, her voice raspy from the sobbing. “Thank you so much for your help.”

She walked off a bit faster than necessary, leaving the three on their own journey towards Shibuya.

“Okay, but like,” Ann paused like she was trying to think of words. She leaned closer to Keiko and spoke quietly like she didn’t want Makoto to hear. “Did you know Makoto was this jacked?”

Keiko chuckled. “Wait til you see her naked.”

She spoke loud enough for Makoto to hear. Keiko’s laugh stopped when her friend cracked her knuckles.

“What was that?”

“Uh, nothing,” Keiko said. She then began whistling nonchalantly.

Keiko was a bit jealous post-workout when Ann wasn’t dying as she had on that first day. 

Life is unfair.

===

_ Thursday, June 16, After School _

“Makoto, you have to stop pacing.” She had been driving Keiko nuts since yesterday’s meeting on the rooftop. 

“I’m just saying, Keiko.” Makoto had been as frustrated with Keiko as Keiko had been with her. “You have too much trust in them. If they were really trying to help, they’d have found his name by now.”

“Prez!” Keiko said more out of frustration than trying to get her attention. “Fucking calm down.”

The locker room at Protein Lovers was probably the wrong place to be having this argument. 

“We’re both stressed out,” Keiko said, trying to level with her friend. “Working out obviously only wound us up more.”

Makoto nodded in agreement. She was still astoundingly sweaty, which had an effect on Keiko that she was trying to ignore.

“Let’s go to the arcade.”

“That sounds like a complete waste of time,” Makoto huffed. “What if we went to see a movie?”

Keiko wore a grin as she teased Makoto. “Are you gonna hold my hand while we watch?”

“If you grab my hand, I’ll hold your hand,” Makoto said coolly. 

Keiko couldn’t take the teasing nearly as well as she gave it. She blushed wildly and stammered. “I- I was kidding.”

“Well, stop giving a girl the wrong idea.”

“You can’t-” Keiko stammered again. “You can’t do this-”

Makoto rolled her eyes. “You really are wound up today.”

They exited Protein Lovers and noticed Ren walking around Central Street talking to every shady character he could find until he stopped in front of the alley where they left the gym. Keiko was suddenly happy they’d both changed back into their school uniforms. There was something awkward about getting gawked at by a guy, even if it was a guy they’d both previously gawked at. ‘It’s a bit hypocritical, I guess,’ Keiko thought.

“What’s up?” Keiko asked as they walked up to him.

Ren shrugged. “Oh, you know. Investigations and stuff.”

“I think I’ve got us covered,” Keiko said. 

“I don’t doubt that, but if I can figure it out before we go see our friend, you don’t need to burn a favor. She works in favors, right?”

Keiko nodded. She hadn’t recalled telling Ren about that, but it was bound to have come up at some point. They’d talked about Ohya extensively, plus he’d probably spent some time of his own with her if he was working at Crossroads.

“If we can save that favor for later, we should,” Ren said.

“You say ‘we’ like we’re part of your team,” Makoto said.

Ren raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you?”

“Absolutely not,” Makoto said. She ranted something about proving their justice while Keiko rolled her eyes and made faces just out of her line of sight. Ren tried to keep a straight face. “What’s so funny?”

Keiko straightened up immediately and Ren tried to defend himself. “Uh, nothing, sorry. I just thought of a funny joke Boss told me and…”

Makoto didn’t get her next words out before Keiko changed the subject completely, not wanting to deal with an angry Makoto again. 

“She’s tense today,” Keiko said. “We’re trying to find something relaxing to do to get our mind off things. You should do the same.”

“Nah,” Ren said. “If I relax, I just feel guilty.”

“At least somebody is responsible,” Makoto grumbled in Keiko’s direction. “Anyway, we’re going to see a movie.”

“Oh, is there a couple’s discount or something?”

Makoto chuckled while Keiko objected.

“I should have never started joking about that.”

“Joking,” Ren said, putting air quotes around the word. “Right.”

“Well,” Keiko sighed. “I think we’re going to get to our movie before I embarrass myself even further.”

“At least you’re admitting it’s self-inflicted,” Makoto said with a small smile. “Look at you, displaying some personal growth.”

Keiko rolled her eyes while Ren walked away. “Ya know, he’s definitely interested in you.”

“Yeah, I’ve noticed,” Makoto said.

“Is it a two-way street?”

“Eh. I’m too busy for men.”

“Weird, the other day you called him a boy,” Keiko said with a crooked grin. 

“Let’s just-” Makoto sighed. “Let’s go see a movie.”

===

_ Saturday, June 18, Evening _

This trip to Shinjuku wasn’t nearly as nerve-racking for Keiko as her previous trips had been. It helped to have Ren and Makoto by her side as they made their way to Crossroads. Ren had a calming effect. He was crafty enough that Keiko thought between the two of them, they could escape any problem harm-free. Makoto’s effect was closer to that of a bodyguard. A glare in the direction of any harassers was enough to get them to stay away. It was hilarious, Keiko thought, to watch these big men back off in fear of a teenage girl dressed in a white blouse and black skirt like she was going to church on Sunday. They entered Crossroads with little interaction from the usual denizens of Shinjuku.

“Welcome!” They were greeted by the raspy voice of Lala-chan, who eagerly sat Ren and Makoto down and started catching up with them immediately. She indeed was the ultimate people person, Keiko thought. ‘I should take lessons.’ She motioned Keiko to the opposite end of the bar, where Ohya was two sheets to the wind and slowly sipping Coke from a can. She looked dejected and miserable.

“Lala-chan cut me off,” she told Keiko in lieu of a greeting.

“You probably deserved it, Ohya-san.” Keiko knew Ohya got testy when she drank, doubly so when she got cut off. Maybe keeping things respectful was the best way to handle things right now.

“Ohya-san? Please, kid. I made you wear a fuckin’ go-go dress.” Ohya made a ‘pfft’ noise. “Stick to first names.”

“Hey, you act like I didn’t look great in that dress,” Keiko said. “I kept it, by the way.”

“You can have it,” Ichiko said. “I meant to tell you that.” She sighed. “Sorry, I’m getting forgetful in my old age.”

“It could be the booze,” Keiko pointed out. “You seem to go through a lot of it.”

“When you’ve seen the things I’ve seen and dealt with what I’ve dealt with, it’s hard.” Ohya seemed off tonight. “Fucking Kayo.”

“Did something happen?”

“No,” Ohya said. “I’m just having a hard time coping.”

“Have you found her yet?”

“No. And I’m not close.” Ohya’s head would have hit the bartop if Keiko hadn’t caught it. 

“Okay, Ichi.” Keiko held her by the collar with her forearm, forcing her back into an upright position. “Lala-chan, can we get water?” Lala-chan brought over a glass, which Keiko grabbed and forced into Ohya’s hand. “You either drink this, or I throw it in your face. Your choice.”

Ohya chugged it, finishing the tall glass by shouting “Woo!” 

“God,” Keiko groaned. “Can you sit now?”

Ohya nodded and adjusted herself in her seat. “Sorry.”

“Are you good to have a conversation?” Keiko looked Ohya in her glassy eyes. 

“Yes,” Ohya said. “I can be serious for a moment.”

“The gang running Shibuya,” Keiko said. “I need the name of the guy in charge.” 

Ohya sat up straight like she wasn’t drunk off her ass. “Back up. Where’d you catch wind of this?”

“School. He’s targeting our students.”

“Let him,” Ohya said. “It’s better than the alternatives.”

“Oh? And what’s that?”

“He starts wasting them.”

Keiko tried to control her breathing. “I need a name, and I’m calling in that favor.”

Ohya let out a long sigh. “If you die, I’m drinking myself to death.”

“I think you’re already doing that.” Keiko couldn’t imagine anyone drinking so much in the first place. She didn’t want to think of Ohya drinking even more. 

Ohya pulled a pen out of her pocket and grabbed a napkin, scribbling a name on it. “That’s your guy. Stay the fuck away from him.”

“I intend to,” Keiko said. 

“Your friends stay the fuck away from him, too,” Ohya said, gesturing towards her friends at the door. “I need their names.”

Keiko gazed back. “Why?”

“Because if I’m processing obits and run into their names, your name is going to be in the next day’s while mine finds its way into the police blotter.”

Keiko nodded. “That’s a fair trade.”

“You’ve got a deathwish.”

“Nah.” Keiko sighed. “I’m just impossibly nosy.” She would have walked away, but Keiko came up with another idea that might help cheer Ohya up. “I think I know someone who can get some information on Kayo.”

Ohya looked up. “No you don’t.”

“Ever heard of Alibaba?”

“Like, the old folktale?”

“Something like that.” Keiko’s phone was already buzzing like mad. “I’ll be in touch.”

She walked back to the front end of the bar, where Makoto was laughing at something Ren had said. Her smile came a lot more easily tonight, Keiko noticed. She felt a pang of jealousy and pushed it to the side. “Are you two ready?”

“You can’t take away my evening’s entertainment!” Lala-chan protested sarcastically. “Thank you for visiting, kids. Hopefully, I’ve given you something to think about.”

“It’s always a pleasure, Lala-chan,” Ren said.

Makoto stood up and wrapped an arm around Keiko’s shoulders in a quick hug. “Have a good night, Lala-chan.” Keiko hadn’t realized the height difference between the two of them. Makoto had a good five inches on her.

“What was the hug for?” Keiko asked after they left the bar. 

Makoto didn’t answer as quickly as Ren did. 

“Lala-chan told Makoto the best way to receive affection was to provide it for someone else.”

“She didn’t mean that in like, a-”

Keiko interrupted Makoto. “I get it. I’m not a hugger, but my mom is, and I always give my mom hugs when she wants one. Well, not anymore, but that’s because my mom likes-”

“Excuse me!” A blonde woman sitting was dressed strangely, seated behind a table with a series of tarot cards in front of her. “Young man, your fortune is most odd.”

“Huh?” Ren raised an eyebrow. “I don’t really believe in that stuff, ma’am.”

“I’m telling you, just be careful, please. A great tragedy will befall you unless you work with the utmost care.” 

Ren gave a thoughtful look. “Thank you. I’ll keep that in mind.” He pulled out his wallet and walked over to the stand. “Anything about my friends here?” He slipped the woman a bill.

She laid the deck out and flipped a series of cards over and looked at Keiko. “Devil, reverse tower, hanged man…” She continued flipping the rest of the cards. “The main theme I can notice is discovery, but your specific details are muddied.”

She went through the same process for Makoto. “Yours is much more straightforward.” Makoto was an obvious non-believer. “High priestess. Let your intuition guide you.”

“This kind of feels more like fortune cookie advice than a reading,” Makoto said. “But… dad always told me I had a strong gut.”

“He was talking about your abs,” Keiko snorted. Ren chuckled as well, while Makoto wished she was anywhere else.

It was Keiko’s turn to wish she was anywhere else when they made it to the train station. They’d have to switch over at Shibuya Station, and they just  _ had _ to get there at the same time Goro Akechi was heading home from work for the day. 

“Keiko-chan,” Akechi addressed. “And… Amamiya-san. Niijima-san.” His smile made Keiko want to chew bricks. “What a pleasant surprise!”

“Akechi-san,” Keiko said in greeting, making sure not to use the familiar honorific. “Heading home for the night?”

“Undoubtedly,” he said. “I didn’t realize you three were friends.”

“You absolutely ran into Makoto and me in Kichijoji not all that long ago,” Keiko said. “Seriously. You knew we were friends.”

“Right,” Akechi said. “My apologies. I’ve been so tired lately, it must’ve slipped my mind.”

“That, I can believe,” Makoto said. “Are you preparing for entrance exams? You’re a third-year, correct?”

Akechi nodded with a fake smile that made Keiko wish Makoto would drive her fist through his nose. “I am! Your reputation precedes you, Niijima-san. Sae-san often speaks of how well you do as you're told.”

Makoto’s expression didn’t betray her, but a quick glance down and Keiko noticed her tighten her fist. Part of Keiko’s brain shouted ‘do it!’ but Makoto was much more disciplined than that.

“I do what I can to make sure Sis has as little to worry about as possible,” Makoto said. “It’s the least I can do. She’s worked so hard to provide for us.”

‘Oh, no,’ Keiko thought. Makoto was going to need all of the hugs after this.

“Do you know if Sae will be home tonight?”

Akechi rubbed at his elbow, and Keiko noticed the black gloves he was wearing. It may have been night, but it was still June and far too hot out for gloves. Odd.

“I doubt she will be,” Akechi said. It might be the first time he’d ever spoken the truth. “Kaida has her working a strict deadline on this current case. I’m afraid she won’t be getting much time to herself for a while.”

Makoto spoke through gritted teeth. “That’s a shame.”

“We should get going,” Keiko said, grabbing Makoto’s hand. “Have a safe trip home, Akechi.” And she meant it because even if he was a craven dickhead, she didn’t want to make wishing ill will on people a regular habit. ‘I hope you cut yourself while shaving,’ she said. ‘But I hope you make it home safe.’

It was a fair trade-off.

“Do you want me to stay over?” Makoto nodded. “Let’s go back to my house, and I can grab some things.”

“You guys can stop at LeBlanc if you’d like,” Ren said. “I’ve yet to find a problem that more coffee hasn’t fixed.”

“You’re speaking directly to my soul.”

The trains were busy as always, but not rush-hour-busy, which allowed Keiko to take a seat and check her phone on the way back home.

**Alibaba:** You can’t mention my name!

**SendNews:** why not

**Alibaba:** I work in the shadows

**SendNews:** you’re a dork

**SendNews:** besides, it’s not like you’ve done anything illegal

**Alibaba:** …

**Alibaba:** yeah.

**SendNews:** Think of it as payback for spying

**Alibaba:** I could release all the audio from you and Makoto last weekend

**SendNews:** I know where you live

**Alibaba:** fuck

**Alibaba:** Mistakes have been made

**SendNews:** Wait I wasn’t actually going to blackmail you

**Your message could not be sent. User Alibaba no longer exists.**

“Whoops,” Keiko quietly said to herself. “Sorry.”

**Alibaba:** It’s okay

**SendNews:** STOP SPYING ON ME

**Alibaba:** no

The train finally slowed as they approached their stop. Makoto and Ren split with Keiko at the corner, walking down the alley towards LeBlanc while Keiko went to pack a bag. She was hopeful her parents wouldn’t ask too many questions about her destination, although she supposed there was nothing wrong with having a sleepover with a friend. They didn’t even notice Keiko was gone last time. 

“I’m home!” Keiko yelled as she opened the door. She’d made a habit of making a loud entrance, which would give her parents time to not be in the middle of having sex with a stranger.

Keiko’s mom sat on the couch, watching TV when Keiko walked on. She had on some zany game show. “Where’ve you been?”

Keiko stopped her journey up the stairs. “Uh, Shinjuku.” She knew her mother would at least be concerned, if not enraged. Keiko could understand the worry this time.

“Seriously?” Keiko nodded. “Were you alone?”

“No,” Keiko shook her head. “I had Ren and Makoto with me. It was work-related, I swear.”

“You’re not selling yourself or doing drugs, right?” There was a look of genuine concern on her mother’s face.

“What? Absolutely not,” Keiko said, exasperated. “Who would pay money for me?”

Her mother sighed. “I’m going to call my father and apologize for always being such a pain in the ass.”

“Do you want to apologize to your daughter, too?” Keiko said, drawing a short laugh from her mom. “Or maybe it’s dad’s ass that’s-”

“Okay, okay.” She spoke louder than was necessary for the space. “Let’s not joke about that.”

“I mean, I’m the one that’s traumatized.”

Keiko’s mom returned her eyes to the TV as she ignored her daughter’s plight. “Are you home for the night?”

“I’m staying at Makoto’s again,” Keiko said, waiting for a sassy retort that never came.

“Tell her we said hi.” There was sadness in her mother’s voice. Keiko didn’t have an issue with it: Her mother deserved to be at least a little uncomfortable.

She went upstairs, packed some clothes, and returned to LeBlanc, where Ren already had a cup of coffee waiting for her on the counter. Keiko took a seat next to Makoto and took a sip.

“Almost as good as the old man,” Keiko said. “Almost.”

Ren shrugged. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Keiko looked over to Makoto, who hadn’t said much since her return. She looked particularly unhappy. “Did I miss anything?”

“Nothing you probably haven’t already heard,” Ren said.

Makoto gave a small, sad laugh. “He’s as good at getting me to talk as Lala-chan is.”

“That’s impressive,” Keiko said. “Is that how you change hearts?” She directed the question at Ren. “You’d make a good therapist.”

He scoffed. “I wish it were that simple. Shockingly, our targets aren’t usually keen to meet with us for a heart to heart after they get a calling card.”

“Haven’t you only had two targets?” 

“Well, three big targets, after you tell me what Ohya told you.”

“Right. Junya Kaneshiro is his name,” Keiko said. “He’s extremely dangerous.”

Makoto perked up. “That name sounds familiar.”

“He runs Shibuya, apparently.” 

Ren nodded in affirmation. “That’s a good clue. Now we need to find out what the distortion is.”

“He’s a mob boss,” Makoto said. “I know who he is. My father was investigating him when he died.”

Keiko and Ren both shared a look. Keiko looked down into her coffee, suddenly wishing it held more than just angry bean water. 

“How does stealing a heart work?” Makoto’s voice sounded less composed than usual. 

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.” Ren’s tone was sincere, but Makoto took it as antagonistic. Keiko could tell by the way she tensed, so she reached over and placed a hand on her back in an attempt to calm her down.

Makoto got the message and took a deep breath. “You’re probably right.”

“We’re moving forward with our investigation tomorrow,” Ren said. “If we’re successful in finding a way into his heart, I can explain part of our methods on Monday. I’m serious when I say you won’t understand.”

Keiko nodded. Ren was one of the very few people she’d trust a cryptic warning from. 

Makoto wasn’t on the same page, but she trusted Keiko’s instincts. “We can talk Monday after school. I expect an explanation.”

Keiko led Makoto out of LeBlanc and towards the train station. It was getting late, and they were nearing the end of the train schedule. 

That night wasn’t nearly as fun as their previous sleepover, with Makoto’s mood soured from discovering the mafia boss’s identity. She told Keiko as much.

“Had I known…” She paused, slamming her fist against the kitchen table. “I’d have figured out how to take him down myself.”

Keiko rolled her eyes incredulously. “How? By developing superpowers? By bringing him before the Student Council for punishment?”

“I would have-”

“You would have done nothing because we’re powerless in this situation.” Keiko sighed. “I hate this, too. But they’re in a position to make real change, and we need to trust them.”

Makoto raised her voice in an uncharacteristic fashion. “Just because you have a crush on Ren doesn’t mean they’re good people! Shit!”

Keiko was taken aback and didn’t respond for a few minutes. She stood up from her seat at the table and walked across the room to sit on the couch. Makoto continued sitting at the table looking straight down, analyzing every grain of the stained, polished wood. 

If Keiko hadn’t promised Makoto she’d stay, she’d have left. She swore she wouldn’t let the quiet sobs break her; what Makoto said was bullshit, and she should know that.

An apology came 20 minutes later after Makoto calmed down. It helped that Keiko dug through Makoto’s stash of movies to find something that would cheer her up, settling on one of the mafia movies Makoto was mad her friend had never seen. The Godfather, or something. The name was in English. 

“That was so uncalled for,” Makoto said after sitting down next to Keiko.

Keiko nodded. “Correct.” She wasn’t going to give Makoto an out. Keiko felt her friend needed to own up.

“I’m sorry.” She said in a raspy voice.

“You should be,” Keiko said. “There’s a lot worth yelling at me for, I’m sure.” She sighed. “If you want to be angry at me, pick a reason that’s real.”

“I-” Makoto stammered. “But you’re always talking about him.”

“Because I have three best friends, one of them who I’m with constantly and another who hasn’t left her house in literal years. Who else am I supposed to talk about? My parents?”

Makoto looked into her lap, where her hands were folded. She started nervously twiddling her thumbs. “I just thought-”

“Makoto, if you asked him, he’d tell you that I never shut up about you,” Keiko said with a somber look. “A lot of people would say that. Complete strangers would say that.”

“There’s no way you talk about me that much,” Makoto said, still looking at her lap.

A buzz came from the pocket of Keiko’s pajama pants. She pulled her phone out and checked her messages, not entirely pleased nor shocked to find a message from Alibaba. Keiko tapped Makoto on the shoulder and showed her the screen.

**Alibaba:** I can provide proof 

“How-”

“She listens in on my conversations sometimes,” Keiko said. “It’s not right and a total invasion of privacy.”

**Alibaba:** You’d be lost without me.

Makoto looked at the phone, concerned. “That’s concerning.”

“It’s saved me more than it’s hurt me.” Keiko said, shrugging. “She reminds me of Navi.”

**Alibaba:** Hey! Listen…

“I should not have said that.”

“It could be worse. You could have called her the owl,” Makoto said, a smile creeping across her face. 

“Makoto, no!” Keiko’s phone buzzed with reckless abandon, Alibaba spamming it with the most mundane of advice, along with gifs of owls every few messages. Keiko quickly turned the phone off. “There. Now we don’t have to worry about her spying.” She left out the possibility that Alibaba had already gotten into Makoto’s phone. 

“How much does she know-”

“Every time I ask, she disappears without a trace.”

“How did you even meet her?” Makoto raised an eyebrow, expecting something nefarious. 

“She’s Sojiro’s daughter,” Keiko said. “We met playing games online, but I’m pretty sure she discovered my username because she was spying on our house.”

“That’s creepy,” Makoto said.

“Well, she’s a shut-in,” Keiko shrugged. “And she’s the best hacker I’ve ever seen.”

“Why didn’t you just ask her about Kaneshiro? She could probably be in and out before he knew what hit him.”

Keiko’s eyes shifted around the room while she tried to think of an excuse. She gave up. “I didn’t think to ask?”

Makoto threw her arms in the air in an exaggerated motion. “How much easier could this have been?”

“In case you can’t tell, I live for making my life harder than it has to be!” Keiko nearly giggled through her argument. Makoto laughed, too, and it continued a little while longer until things went quiet again.

“Well, we’ve successfully talked through one of the most important films of the 20th century,” Makoto said, glancing towards the television.

“I think we needed the talk more than we needed the movie.”

Makoto touched Keiko’s arm lightly. “Agreed.” 

===

_ Monday, June 20, After School _

Keiko couldn’t stand the diner’s tense atmosphere. 

“You can’t be at a standstill,” Makoto said, a bit more loudly than anyone was comfortable with. 

“Unless you know how to fly, we ain’t getting to that damn place!” Ryuji was loud in the first place, but they really didn’t need to be having this conversation in public. 

Ann grabbed Ryuji’s forearm and hushed him. “You’re going to get us kicked out!”

Morgana mewed something that made Ryuji even angrier, but a look from Ren calmed the blond down considerably. 

“We have to find a way in, Makoto,” Ren said in a calm voice. “If we don’t have an in, we don’t have a job.”

His calm voice did nothing but enrage her further. 

“Do you really need a way in that badly?” Makoto sighed. “Fine. I’ll get you one.” She stood up from the table, not without putting down enough money to cover her bill, and started on her way out of the diner.

“Makoto! Wait!” Ren took off after her as she stormed off. A very specific part of Keiko thought the scene was hilarious. It looked like Ren was chasing after a forlorn lover. Another part of Keiko was extremely jealous, but she couldn’t tell of who. She shoved that part to the back of her mind.

Ann and Ryuji shared a glance.

“We should follow them,” Ryuji said. “She had that look…”

“Yeah. That look Ren gets before he does something fucking stupid,” Keiko said. “She got it from me.”

“He’s such a terrible influence,” Ann huffed as they exited the diner and walked down the block, where they found Makoto with Ren not far behind. She was arguing with a sketchy-looking man. Keiko couldn’t hear the conversation she so badly wanted to hear.

Then she saw what she so badly didn’t want to see. Ren hadn’t quite hit the scene when the man grabbed Makoto’s arm and dragged her towards a nearby vehicle. It would have worked had she caught the arm he held her with and thrust her opposite arm into his ribs, then the arm he’d grabbed under his elbow. In a chopping motion, she broke the arm with a snap.

“Holy fuck.” Ryuji said as they got closer. It would have been a victory had multiple other men not forced her into the car. It sped off, leaving Ren standing at the curb while the rest of the Thieves and Keiko caught up.

“She just…” Ann and Keiko shared a look. “Did she really just do that?”

“She did,” Ren said. 

Keiko didn’t have a quip. She always had a quip. “What the fuck?”

Ann wrapped an arm around her. “We’ll get her.”

“If they don’t kill her, I’m going to,” Keiko grumbled. Ryuji hailed a cab to follow the kidnapper. It zoomed in and out of traffic: This cabbie earned more than just a tip, Keiko thought. If they survived this trip, the Phantom Thieves would forever be indebted to him. They landed in front of a club Keiko didn’t recognize called the 820, a modern-looking building in an upscale part of Shibuya not all that far from the main drag. Ren paid double the fare, and the cabbie drove off.

“Ann, you stay here with Keiko.”

“Why do I have to-”

“She’s too stupid not to follow us.”

Usually, Keiko would have taken it as an insult. “He’s right.”

“Ryuji and I can handle this.” Keiko had severe doubts that he and Ryuji could handle it.

They went in after Makoto anyway.

“Ann, you can go with them,” Keiko sighed. “I’ll behave. I know I’m not,” she thought for a second. “Whatever you guys are. I’m not that.” She slumped against the building, sitting on the ground.

Ann nodded and sprinted inside. Seconds later, a familiar and definitely unwelcomed face exited a nearby store just two doors up from the club.

“Keiko-chan,” said the tall, brown-haired nuisance. “What are you doing here?”

“Akechi,” Keiko said, ensuring she used no honorifics. “I came to pick up a friend’s sister, but, ah,” Keiko had to get him away from the building. “She’s not ready yet.”

“Huh. Who comes to a club in the afternoon?”

“She’s a nurse,” Keiko said, thinking on her feet. “She works the night shift, so she can’t really go out at normal times.”

“An admirable choice of careers,” Akechi said. Keiko looked over his shoulder to make sure none of the Phantom Thieves left the building. “Is your friend inside?”

“He is,” Keiko said. “He actually just texted me, though. We were supposed to hang out, but I suppose I’m getting ditched.”

“That sounds like a poor friend.” Akechi furrowed his brow. “Would you like to accompany me to Kichijoji? I’m friends with the owner of a jazz club, and-”

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were asking me on a date, Goro-kun,” Keiko said. She nearly vomited, but she did, in fact, say it. 

“You could take it that way, and I would not mind one bit,” Akechi said. “In fact, that’s exactly what I’m doing.”

Keiko’s worst nightmare was coming true, and she had no way out of it. She had to stop herself from gritting her teeth. “Let’s do it,” she said. “I’ve never seen live music before.”

‘I will never, ever let Ren off the hook for this one.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't really have the proper words to explain how much I love this chapter, so I'm hoping everyone else gets the same enjoyment out of it. 
> 
> So, when I started this story, I had zero intention of Makoto being as central to the story as she is, but I realized early on that Kaneshiro's palace, and later Sae's, would have a lot of dead time for Keiko if Makoto wasn't involved somehow. That led to me integrating her into the story more, and I'd argue now that she's the second most important character. 
> 
> Let me know what you think. I think the majority opinion on this story so far has been positive, with a follow-up question of "why does this work?" I think it works because it's way different than any other story in this fandom, and my inspirations for the characters aren't anything based within the fandom. I don't want to toot my own horn too much, so I'll stop here.


	9. Backbone

_ Monday, June 20, After School _

Akechi hailed a cab, the same one Ryuji had flagged. The driver gave Keiko a look, luckily out of Goro’s view. She quickly shook her head while Akechi pulled himself into the seat next to her.

They began their awkward ride towards Kichijoji, which consisted of Akechi trying to make awkward small talk and Keiko trying to pretend she wasn’t freaking out that her best friend just stormed into a mafia-owned club with the intention of accosting their boss. She hoped Akechi didn’t catch her looking distracted, because she wasn’t sure she could pretend nothing was wrong. He received brief, succinct answers to every question while the cab driver’s concerned eyes kept meeting Keiko’s. He was a man in his 40’s, and Keiko expected he’d been around the block a time or two. She probably looked like a kidnapping victim, or somebody being held against her will.

Keiko wasn’t kidnapped, but she couldn’t fight the feeling that she was being restrained. Her phone buzzed several times, but she felt it would be rude to check. Plus, she didn’t want Akechi to have any insight into whatever was happening. 

The cab pulled up to the curb of the covered walkway that made up the main path of Kichijoji, normally one of Keiko’s favorite places because of the pleasing design and the people watching. She wasn’t too fond of it, or her company, today.

They took a left turn at the next main walkway before they shortly turned down an alley, Keiko feeling cautious at first. She didn’t like being led down an alley by somebody she considered her nemesis, but she highly doubted Akechi was much more than a fake. Keiko dealt with that from teachers and her fellow students daily. 

The two stopped in front of a brick building with stairs going down. They went in and took a seat in front of a jazz band playing soft music. She’d have really liked this place had she come here with Makoto or Ren, or even Ann. Instead, she was sitting in front of her arch-enemy, terrified that none of her friends would make it out of the day unharmed. 

“I’d say taking a girl to hang out in a basement on the first date is a terrible idea, but it’s pretty on-brand for you,” Keiko said, trying to force a friendly smile to show she was joking.

Akechi’s laugh was a bit stiff, but he almost sounded human, so she’d let it slide this time.    
“It’s a jazz club,” Akechi said. “I can’t lock you up until you break the law.”

“Oh.” Keiko said, then let out a giggle. His response wasn’t that funny, but she was currently aiding and abetting a criminal gang, and her shut-in neighbor occasionally fed her illegally obtained information out of boredom. “Well, maybe I have a dark side. You wouldn’t even know.”

“I could find out if I wanted to,” Akechi said, nonplussed. “Everything comes back clean as a whistle.”

“I really think you overestimated how exciting my life is,” Keiko quipped. “I wandered into all this by no choice of my own.”

“It’s weird how things turn out,” Akechi nodded. “My story is similar.”

“I have to admit, I don’t know much about your life.” Keiko couldn’t believe she was about to do this. She didn’t want to do this. “I’m curious to hear it.”

“In time,” Akechi mumbled. His demeanor changed back to normal quickly, though. “It’s not a happy story, and this isn’t the place for that kind of discussion.” 

Keiko understood. There were many events just within the last few weeks she wouldn’t feel comfortable telling most people, and that didn’t include anything illegal or potentially supernatural. 

“Eh,” Keiko said. “I don’t force anyone to talk. That’s the cops’ jobs.”

If the laugh Akechi let out was his real laugh, she now understood why he kept it hidden. The noise was grating and slightly unhinged and made Keiko profoundly uncomfortable to the point that she started looking around for escape routes. 

She was able to mask her fear, and Akechi asked another question.

“I’m genuinely curious.” Akechi queried with a raised eyebrow. “What is your issue with law enforcement?”

This was the time nor the place, but she supposed a fairly honest answer was something he’d earned. The date had been awkward, but he was friendly enough. 

“What do you know about Kayo Murakami?”

Had she caught Akechi off-guard? His expression grew darker. “That was my case.”

“Her friends are starting to wonder what happened to her,” Keiko said. “From what I understand, the police haven’t completed their investigation and they don’t seem too interested in going much further with it.”

“It’s a complicated case-”

Keiko cut him off. “So complicated that her friends and family don’t deserve  _ any _ explanation?”

“Three can keep a secret when one is dead,” Akechi replied. 

Keiko gave a sardonic laugh. “Sorry.” She took a deep breath and blew it out. “That’s just so typical. This isn’t something we’re going to agree on.” 

“Perhaps we should save our arguments for TV,” Akechi’s expression turned back to normal. “They seem to draw a lot of eyes.”

“I think people just like watching a cop get yelled at on live television,” Keiko grinned. She pulled out her phone to check her messages and had eight from Ren and 50 from Alibaba. “Shit. I’m sorry, Akechi-kun, but I really do need to go.”

“Is something wrong?” She had to think of a good excuse and finally landed on one. Keiko hoped she hadn’t paused for too long.

“We’ve got a group project due at school tomorrow,” Keiko lied. “I completely forgot.”

“Then I mustn’t keep you,” he said as they walked out of the club. “I had fun.”

“Me too,” Keiko said. “But we probably shouldn’t do this again. Ya know, celebrities and all. We wouldn’t want the press getting the wrong idea.” It was the most conceited thing she’d ever said in her entire life, and she felt like she needed a shower after.

But Akechi laughed and agreed. “Have fun on the project, Keiko.”

Keiko had a last-second thought. ‘He’s going to follow me.’ She pulled out her phone and sent a quick message to Ren.

**Keiko:** meet at my house. Parents should be gone. Akechi following me home, probably. Don’t trust him.

**Ren:** ok

**Keiko:** Makoto should know where the key is. 

**Ren:** k

She got on the first train to Shibuya and made the transfer to Yongen-Jaya, an irritating brown-haired detective following her the whole way. He disappeared after she got off the train and she checked her messages.

**Alibaba:** Took care of your akechi problem

**SendNews:** what did you do

**Alibaba:** it’s weird how easy it is to get audio recordings of school shootings

**Alibaba:** America, what a place

**SendNews:** you’re ridiculous

**Alibaba:** you’re welcome

‘Home sweet home,’ Keiko thought as she opened the door to the thankfully empty living room. She bolted upstairs and into her room, where the Phantom Thieves, and Makoto, sat. Keiko couldn’t help but notice the somber atmosphere. Makoto looked like she’d been trying not to cry while Ann tried to comfort her. Ren looked furious. Ryuji looked like he was trying not to investigate the contents of Keiko’s room. Yusuke was staring out the window at the abandoned office building that often kept Keiko up at night.

The room was silent for a minute. “What happened?”

Nobody spoke. Ann and Ryuji shared worried glances.

“Makoto,” Ren said. “Want to tell her what you did?”

Makoto choked, then spoke. “I confronted Kaneshiro.”

Rage. White-hot, boiling rage. It must’ve shown on Keiko’s face.

“You fucking-” Keiko had to stop because she was  _ not _ going to cry. “It’s worse than that, isn’t it?” ‘Let’s get the whole story before I fly off the handle.’

“He’s demanding I pay him 3 million yen, or else he leaks photos of us with beer and drugs in the picture,” Makoto said, looking down into her lap. “I’m going to-”

“You’re going to do nothing,” Ren spoke with an authority Keiko didn’t expect. “We’re taking care of this.”

“Ren, wait-” Ann stammered. 

“Ann, no offense, but if you say something stupid like ‘Makoto did the right thing,’ I’m going to pop you.” Ann shrunk under Keiko’s glare.

“I’m not-” she swallowed. “I’m not saying she did the right thing. I’m saying, we can use it to our advantage.”

Morgana meowed, and Keiko had a sudden urge to hurl the cat into the sun. She was sure he said something that would have pissed her off.

“Morgana’s right,” Ren said. “We needed somebody Kaneshiro considered a customer, and now we have it.”

“Does that mean-”

“Makoto, we’d like you to come with us.”

She looked up, hopeful. Keiko had seen the look in her eyes before, that first time she offered to stay the night when Sae wasn’t coming home. “To-”

“To the metaverse. We need your help to take down Kaneshiro.”

Every single red flag possible went up, in Keiko’s mind and to her terror, Makoto agreed.

“I’ll do it. I’ll do whatever it takes.” Her voice broke again. “I’m sorry I’ve been such a bother to you all.”

“Is it dangerous?” Keiko interrupted whatever Ren was about to say.

He nodded.

“Will she die?”

“Probably not.” Ren shrugged, then smirked. “Keiko, I promise you. I’ll keep your girlfriend safe.”

Ren didn’t expect her to charge him, and he didn’t expect to go unconscious for a few minutes.

Yusuke made a square with his hands like he was trying to memorize the scene.

“Such unbridled passion!” Makoto had stood up and restrained Keiko, before she could knock Yusuke on his ass.

“You need to calm down,” Makoto said calmly. “I think the rest of you should leave.”

Ren was back standing by then. He nodded and started to walk out, but not without telling Keiko she had a nice left hook.

Everyone else left, and Makoto tried to leave when she realized Keiko wasn’t going to say anything. She didn’t make it out of the door, though. Keiko stood up and grabbed her arm, and sat her down in the desk chair. Keiko returned to her spot on her bed, leaned against the wall, her knees hugged into her chest.

Makoto looked at Keiko expectantly with eyes that said ‘please, yell at me. Hit me. Do something.’

But Keiko couldn’t.

“You might have gotten yourself killed.” Makoto had never heard Keiko sound so defeated. “You  _ knew _ how dangerous this was.”

Makoto couldn’t meet Keiko’s eyes.

“I was explicit. I told  _ both _ of you-” Keiko’s voice got louder, but she calmed. “I told you and Ren both. I told you both to stay away from him. This stays covert.” There was laughter, but it was small and sad. “Do you understand how  _ fucking moronic _ you are? Like, I’m concerned. I’ve always thought you were a little on the stupid side. Sheltered, innocent, only looking to do what you’re told. I really thought Shujin would be a better place if you just grew a fucking backbone.”

“I-”

“I’m not asking for you to talk. I’d actually prefer you didn’t. Looking at you right now hurts.” Keiko choked back a sob. “You have this stupid fucking idea from your cunt of a sister that you’re useless. But you know what’s useless? Charging into a mafia hideout like a goddamn asshole.”

“I’m not-”

“I’m not saying you are. Let me fucking finish, and then you can punch me in the face for being a dick, or whatever. I really don’t care if you ever talk to me again right now.” Keiko took some kind of melancholic pleasure from seeing Makoto’s face. “You aren’t useless, but what you did today was the action of someone who believes they are. If you ever do something this stupid again, I will not be privy to it. I will have nothing to do with your death wish.”

“I don’t have a deathwish.”

“Fucking prove it, then.” Keiko was crying now. She was finished, so she felt okay crying. “What you did today was no different from Suzui on that rooftop. The fact that Ann didn’t see the parallels is the only thing that brings me some form of happiness.”

“I don’t want to die.”

“Then stop being a fucking asshole!”

Makoto didn’t respond, but she didn’t stand up. She let Keiko have her outburst. Somewhere in Makoto’s brain, she knew she deserved to hear every bit of what her friend was saying. This wasn’t Ren looking to make light of a bad situation. This was somebody much closer trying to make heads and tails of an admittedly terrible decision. 

Keiko looked out the window and noticed the light in the abandoned office was on. Now was not the time for curiosity, but it was only just now getting dark out. The light was usually only on in the middle of the night.

She was broken out of her thoughts when Makoto finally spoke.

“I’m going to get everyone out of this.”

Keiko scoffed. “Where the fuck are you going to get 3 million yen?”

“I’m not.” She looked down. “I’m going to figure out how the Phantom Thieves do whatever it is they do. And I’m going to do it myself.”

If Keiko wasn’t so busy laughing, she’d be sobbing. Makoto sounded so determined. “I’m sorry. You really sound like you think that’s not dumb as shit.”

Makoto was undeterred. “I’m going to do it myself, and then I’m going after my sister.”

Keiko just stared, dumbfounded. “You-”

“I don’t know what their methods are.” Makoto nodded. “Right. I shouldn’t go all in on this plan. What else am I supposed to do?” 

“Just-” Keiko stammered. “Stay here. Don’t go anywhere. Don’t go tomorrow. We can figure out our way around this. Shinichi said it himself, I need to start charging for papers. Maybe I can schedule a debate with Akechi, or-”

“I’m not letting you, or anyone else bail me out.”

“You’re so goddamn stubborn.”

Makoto shook her head. “I’m just done being useless.” She took a breath, then let it out. “But you’re right. What I did was stupid, and I will never live it down.”

Keiko had calmed herself, and without the rage, she just felt- well, she couldn’t explain what she was feeling. She just wanted to hold Makoto, and tell her that she’d never have to feel this way again, that everything would be alright, and that she wasn’t cornered.

That’s exactly what Keiko did. She reached over and pulled her by the hand onto the bed with her, wrapping her in a hug so tight Makoto would never be sad again. Or at least, that’s what Makoto told herself.

“I’m still mad at you,” Keiko said. “But I am not abandoning you. We’re going to get through this. And if the ship goes down? I’m going down with you.”

===

_ Tuesday, June 21, After School _

Keiko had good days and bad days, but she’d never had a day this long. 

Kawakami noticed at lunch that her and Makoto didn’t do much speaking, opting instead to share nervous looks. When she asked if something had happened, Makoto told her they’d had an argument over something stupid.

“A boy,” Keiko said. “We both like the same boy.” It was a good lie, because it was believable. There were rumors going around school about them because they’d mistakenly spent too much time around Ren during school hours. The rumors were mostly funny, so it was fine.

The rumored threesome was her favorite. Makoto would become so flustered that she couldn’t refute the claims, so Keiko used it as ammo.

She wasn’t using anything as ammo today. Makoto had been adamant that she was going through with her stupid plan and now Keiko was sitting at home feeling like a wife waiting for her husband to come back from war. Nothing would distract her from the idea that her best friend might not return.

Keiko was suddenly regretting telling Kasumi she was busy. Having a pleasant ear to bend would have been helpful, but she didn’t trust herself to not spill the beans. Makoto had her this frazzled. So frazzled, in fact, that she nearly jumped through the ceiling when she received a text from Ren.

**Ren:** You should go to Makoto’s

She then received another text, from Makoto.

**Makoto:** Can you come over? Sae won’t be home for a few hours.

With a sigh and with much trepidation, Keiko gathered her things and changed into comfier clothes, then hopped on the train to Makoto’s neighborhood. 

It was night by the time Keiko made it to her friend’s home, and if Makoto hadn’t told her things in the metaverse went well, Keiko wouldn’t have believed her. She looked exhausted.

“I swear, Keiko,” Makoto assured her as they sat down in the living room. “I’m fine. More than fine.”

“Are you going to tell me what happened?”

“Ren agreed when I asked if I could tell you.” Makoto’s smile had returned from the previous day. She seemed more at peace, either because she’d accepted the impending doom, or because she’d found a way out of it. “I would have told you anyway.”

Keiko snorted. “He probably told you it was best to tell me so I stopped asking.”

Makoto gave Keiko the shifty eyes. “Actually, that’s almost word-for-word what he said.”

“Jackass,” Keiko said. “I never did apologize for punching him.”

“I don’t think he thought much of it,” Makoto shrugged. “I asked Ann, and she said he needs to learn to read a room and he won’t learn anything if you apologize.”

Keiko folded her arms. “Good. I don’t really feel like apologizing. Now tell me what happened.”

Makoto gave her a near play-by-play rundown of the day’s entire events, from the dreary skies of shadow Shibuya, to the creepy ATM people, to the vast bank larger than any Makoto had ever seen. 

She explained the shadows, the concept of cognition, the threats against her sister and the short, fat, purple shadow of Junya Kaneshiro.

It was all so fantastic that Keiko couldn’t bring herself to believe all of it, even coming from the person she trusted the most.

“I haven’t even told you the craziest part,” Makoto said. Keiko had to laugh a little, because the theatrics were very out of character for Makoto. She reached towards her face and made a pulling motion, like she was wearing an invisible mask. “We were nearly backed into a corner with no escape, and Kaneshiro had a ton of shadows after us. When, I don’t know, something inside me just snapped,” she snapped her fingers when she said it. “And I heard this voice. ‘Have you decided to tread the path of strife?’ That’s what she asked me. Then my head hurt, like I was shedding my skin. Or like, something was pulling every part of my brain in a different direction. I reached up and there was something metal attached, a mask. I pulled and pulled and pulled, but it wouldn’t come off. Then I stepped forward, and Keiko, I swear this happened.” She stood up, tensed her fists and made a downward step onto the carpet, shaking the apartment. “I did that. I cracked the tile when I did it, and then I pulled again. The mask came off, and-” She looked around the apartment. “Johanna appeared under me.” 

“Johanna?”

Makoto nodded. “My Persona. Pope Johanna, a legendary medieval figure known as the only woman to ever become Pope of the Catholic church. The coolest spart?”

“This all sounds so ridiculous. And you keep saying what’s next is the coolest part.”

“Because it’s all so cool, Keiko!” Keiko had to laugh, because Makoto never got this excited for anything. “She’s a motorcycle! And she blows shit up!”

Keiko really tried not to react, because deadpanning Makoto’s excitement would have been hilarious, but she couldn’t. She had to laugh. “Makoto, there’s no way any of this actually happened.”

“Keiko, I swear.” Makoto made a crossing motion across her chest, meaning ‘cross my heart.’ “It’s all true.”

“I don’t care if it’s true,” Keiko smiled. “You’re happy. I’ve never seen you this happy.”

“It’s so hard to explain,” Makoto said. Her excited smile turned into one more thoughtful. “It’s like learning who you are. Like I’ve found meaning. I know who I am, what I want, and who I need to be.”

“That’s even more unbelievable than everything else you’ve told me,” Keiko joked, but Makoto nodded in agreement.

“I wouldn’t have believed any of this yesterday,” Makoto sighed. “I feel like everything is different now. Everything and nothing matters all at the same time.”

“So, talking like that is just a side effect of metaverse stuff,” Keiko said, mostly to herself. She was taken out of her thoughts when Makoto asked her an astounding question.

“Do you want to go on a date sometime?”

“What?” Had Keiko not been sitting on a sofa, she’d have fallen onto the floor. 

“Like, a date,” Makoto said, confidently. “Not the type of nut, either. We could go get dinner. See a movie. As a couple.”

Keiko had no idea her heart soared the way it did, nor did she understand why she felt like crying happy tears. “Yes. Yes a million times.”

Makoto sighed in relief. “I’ve been wanting to do that for months.”

“So, you don’t have a crush on Ren?” Keiko grinned, scooting closer to Makoto, who had sat down next to her on the couch. She leaned her head on her shoulder.

“I don’t know whether to punch you or to kiss you.”

“I deserve both, honestly,” Keiko deadpanned.

Makoto didn’t notice her phone ringing over and over again. Had she noticed, she probably would have made sure Keiko left.

The girls had been cuddling on the couch for an hour when they heard someone trying to unlock the door. They quickly took spots across the couch from each other in an attempt to act natural as Sae walked in. 

Acting natural would have worked better if they had the TV on, or books in front of them. There was something sketchy about two teenagers sitting in silence, and Sae picked up on it immediately.

“Sis, you’re actually home,” Makoto said, trying not to sound too surprised. 

Sae didn’t provide a greeting. “I didn’t realize we were having company.”

“Actually this is my-”

“Hi, Niijima-san,” Keiko stood up and bowed. “I’m Makoto’s friend from school.” Those words tasted like shards of glass. “Keiko Miyahara. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Likewise,” Sae said. “What were you two up to?”

“Huh?” 

Keiko watched Makoto flounder trying to think of a good lie, and spoke up herself instead. “It’s pretty stupid,” Keiko said. “We had a lesson in history class today about Pope Joan, and I was asking Makoto if she remembered much about her. We have exams coming up soon, and I don’t feel like Ushimaru is doing as good of a job preparing us as he should.”

Sae rolled her eyes. “He pretends to be strict, but he takes a lot of shortcuts. I’m glad to see students catching on.” She looked tired, but her smile was friendly enough. Keiko felt bad for calling her a cunt yesterday. It was obvious she was overworked.

‘I really should look in the mirror, sometimes,’ Keiko imagined her inner voice sighing. ‘I’ve snapped on Makoto for similar reasons.’

“Well, I’m glad Makoto is making friends,” Sae said. “Especially if you’re helping her study.”

“It’s a two-way street, I promise,” Keiko assured her, Sae unknowing of the hidden meaning. “I’m a writer, so I help her out with composition.”

“Oh!” The lightbulb went off for Sae. “You’re  _ that _ Miyahara. Akechi was talking about you today, something about how you guys went on a date.”

‘Oh. Fuck me.’

“You went on a date with Akechi and you didn’t tell me?” To Sae, Makoto looked far more hurt than was necessary. To Keiko, Makoto looked like her world was shattering.

“I was going to, but we got so caught up-”

“I can’t believe you,” Makoto grumbled.

Sae shrugged. “Kids,” she said dismissively. “I’m going to bed. It’s been a long day. You two get to bed sometime soon. Keiko, you can sleep on the couch, if you’d like. I don’t think it’s safe to be on the trains this late at night.”

“Thank you, Niijima-san.”

“Sae is fine.” Keiko wondered how friendly Sae would be if she knew Makoto was planning on taking Keiko on a date.

Keiko suddenly wasn’t so keen to spend the night.

Sae went to her room and closed the door. Keiko knew she had some questions to answer, and she didn’t know why she was so nervous.

Explaining this away was so simple, and she just  _ knew _ Makoto would understand. 

“When were you planning on telling me about your date?” Makoto sat cross-legged on the couch, her arms crossed as she leaned back into the cushions.

“After you told me about your day,” Keiko said. “I was about to tell you when you dropped that bomb on me.”

Makoto uncrossed her arms and unfolded her legs, and relaxed. “I didn’t ask what happened after we ran off.”

“No, but I promise I was going to tell you. It completely left my mind when you-” Keiko stammered. “I’m just so happy, Makoto.” Keiko let out a deep breath as the tightness in her chest unwound itself.

“You’re forgiven,” Makoto said, now wearing an evil grin, of sorts. It was as evil as she ever got, Keiko thought, but not quite on the level of her or Ren. “Now tell me how much it sucked.”

“That’s gross, Makoto. I would never do such a thing.”

“That’s not-” She gave a frustrated grunt but laughed after. “How bad was it?’

Keiko shrugged. “Not as bad as it should have been. Still not great.”

“How so?”

“We had a friendly conversation, and decided our arguments were best left for TV, where they have the purpose of making money for the capitalist.”

Makoto threw a couch pillow at her, but Keiko was fast and caught it. She placed it on her lap and Makoto crept over, laying her head on it.

She was asleep in seconds, leaving Keiko afraid to move. She figured Makoto had earned a few minutes of sleep, and she had to check her phone anyway. She had all sorts of messages.

**Ren:** are you two in love yet

**Keiko:** uh its too early to say that but…

**Ren:** she actually did it

**Keiko:** really dropped the bomb on me.

**Ren:** was it nuclear

She had another set of messages from Alibaba.

**Alibaba:** that guy your girlfriend pissed off is really intense

**SendNews:** how do you know?

**Alibaba:** his CCTV isn’t as CC as he thinks

**Alibaba:** she should have died

**SendNews:** I know. But she didn’t

**Alibaba:** i had to explain to sojiro why I was crying

**SendNews:** you wouldn’t have had to if you would stop spying

**Alibaba:** i’d rather keep spying. You guys are a trainwreck

Keiko laid her head back and dozed for a few minutes before nudging Makoto awake and forcing her into her bed. Keiko kissed her on the forehead, because that seemed like something couples did, and Makoto honest-to-god mewed. 

Keiko made it back to the couch, falling asleep in minutes.

===

_ Wednesday, June 22, Early Morning _

“Every time I think I’m done overestimating you, you pull off something inconceivable.”

The man in the black mask marched back and forth, up and over the steel tracks in the underground labyrinth of Keiko’s dream. “That phone call? That was a nice touch.” He tutted. “I nearly got hit by a car rushing back to the station. Could you imagine? The Great Detective Prince, struck down by a wayward driver.” He spat. Keiko heard a muffled voice respond. “I know you’d like that. You should like that.”

The muffled voice projected outward from herself. Keiko tried to look away from Akechi, but she had no autonomy. 

“Keep acting like you have justice on your side. Keep pretending.” Keiko wished she’d had autonomy. Fancy suit and pointy mask, regardless, if she could take Ren, she could take this goofy fucker. Akechi laughed. “That’s it, get angry!” His voice cracked as he yelled, a web of ominous black energy gathering behind him.

He was interrupted by the sound of chains. “No.” He repeated the word many times. “You got me monologuing. No! I need more time!” His voice broke with panic. “Hey! Hey-”

“Hey.”

Keiko felt a hand on her shoulder, rubbing gently. 

“Keiko, you need to wake up.” The voice wasn’t the shrill manic she expected. It was quiet, and calm. 

Keiko turned over and came face to face with Makoto’s sister, who was kneeling next to her. Sae and Makoto shared their eyes, Keiko realized, but the silver hair was striking. It was then she realized that she was staring. She shook as if coming out of a daze.

“Sorry,” Keiko mumbled. She felt grimy and sweaty. Gross. 

“Don’t apologize,” Sae said. “You were having a nightmare.”

Keiko’s breathing steadied and she sat up. Sae backed up and took a seat in the easy chair across the room. “Thank you.” Sae gave her a questioning look. “For waking me, I mean.”

“No problem.”

“Sorry if I woke you or anything.”

“You didn’t,” Sae said, taking a look at the clock. “It’s a little before six, so I was getting ready for work.”

“Okay.” Keiko rubbed her eyes and stretched. “I need to get home.”

Sae nodded. “You live in Yongen-Jaya, correct?”

“I do,” Keiko said. “How do you know?”

“Akechi’s run you through the system a million times thinking he’ll find something,” Sae chuckled. “You really have him rattled.”

It was too early in the morning to feel pride, and it was definitely too early in the morning to be worried that Akechi knew where she lived. “That’s great.”

“He won’t do anything,” Sae said. “He’s just not used to losing. I think I’d feel the same way.”

“You make it sound like I’m Moriarty,” Keiko grinned. She was starting to wake up a little more.

Sae laughed. “The opposite, honestly. Sherlock Holmes may have been the detective, but Moriarty was obsessed with him, not the other way around.”

“Your sister is going to be so mad at you for giving me a big ego.”

“She’ll have to get over it.” Sae must have slept well that night, Keiko thought. She still looked worn out, but her voice had more oomph behind it and there was energy in her eyes. “I have business in Yongen-Jaya this morning, if you’d like a ride. It can save you the train ride.”

Keiko raised her eyebrows in surprise. “What’s a prosecutor got to do in Yongen-Jaya?” Her neighborhood was a sleepy place. The only crime she could think of was that old lady with a million cats, and that was more of a problem for the neighborhood association.

“I’m looking into the mental shutdowns,” Sae said, her gaze hardening. “I think there’s a man with some information on them. He runs a coffee shop.”

“No,” Keiko said. “You can’t be serious.”

“What?”

“Sojiro is a good man, Sae-san.” Keiko didn’t want to backtalk her new girlfriend’s sister but Sojiro was off-limits. “I think you’re off base here.”

Sae shook her head. “He’s not a suspect. I just want to see if he has information I’m after.”

“Okay. That’s understandable.” 

Keiko snuck into Makoto’s room to grab her things, along with stealing another kiss on the forehead. ‘Mwahaha. She has no idea.’

Then she went back into the living room, and her and Sae took the brief drive to Yongen-Jaya.

“You know, your reporting has helped us far more than Akechi would ever tell you,” Sae spoke when they were just a few minutes away. 

“You guys are using my reporting?”

Sae nodded. “We were able to connect Kamoshida and Madarame to previous mental shutdown cases.”

That was a connection Keiko had made early on. She was proud others thought her connections held merit. 

“You seem to have a nose for investigation.”

Keiko shrugged. “My grandpa was a detective in Hokkaido for years. My mom’s a dunce, but she told me it skips a generation.”

This drew a laugh from Sae. “Our father always said something similar. We come from a long line of cops, but he was more of a meatball sort of cop. A do-the-right-thing-no-matter-what type. He wasn’t much of an investigator.”

“That’s hard to believe, given your profession.”

“I worked hard to get where I am,” Sae said. “But I’m worried Makoto is a natural.”

Keiko gave her a curious look. “Why is that a worry?”

“She’s got the same attitude dad did.” Sae’s voice turned sad. “It’s what got him killed.”

It took everything in Keiko to not sarcastically reply, ‘you don’t say,’ but she was glad she didn’t do it. 

They pulled up near LeBlanc and got out of the car. The walk to the restaurant wasn’t far, but Sae wasn’t done talking. “Keiko, I trust you.” 

Keiko jumped like she was frightened. Sae didn’t notice.

“If you get a whiff of the Phantom Thieves at school, I want you to give me a call.” She handed Keiko a business card. “You’re the only person who seems to have a beat on them.”

Keiko took the card. “It’s all dumb luck, Sae-san. But I’ll keep you in mind.” If Keiko spoke her mind, she’d break the world record for yelling fuck repeatedly. 

They entered LeBlanc together. Keiko stayed because of a combination of curiosity, hunger, and a severe need for coffee.

“Hey, kid,” Sojiro greeted Keiko first. “Who’s the suit? Do I have another delinquent on my hands?”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “She’s my g- erm my friend’s sister.” All of her incredible acting nearly went down the tube. Sae didn’t notice, but Sojiro did. He gave her a look that told her she’d probably ask later.

“Sae Niijima,” Sae said. “Nice to meet you.”

“Hello, Miss Niijima,” and if Sojiro weren’t so smooth, the way he said it would have been creepy, Keiko thought.

‘He really pulls that off. Holy shit.’ She’d have to ask him to share his methods.

They didn’t work on Sae, though. “What can I get you?” Sojiro switched to professional mode.

“House is fine,” Sae answered quickly. 

Sojiro looked at Keiko but didn’t ask the question. It was implied. “House as well. Is the curry ready yet?”

“You’re bleeding me dry, kid,” Sojiro said, but he laughed after. “I feed her sometimes. I try to help the less fortunate.”

“The only thing unfortunate about me is my friendship with you, old man,” Keiko spoke before she remembered somebody she  _ really needed to impress _ was sitting right next to her.

Luckily, Sae seemed to get a kick out of it. “I didn’t think this place would be so lively.”

“It’s not supposed to be,” Sojiro said bitterly. He set cups in front of Keiko and Sae both, and set a plate of curry in front of Keiko. She started eating while Sae went to work.

“I wish I could say my visit here was only for the coffee,” Sae said. “It’s delicious, by the way.”

“I’ve never gotten a bad review,” Sojiro said. “What can I help you with?”

“I’m looking into Wakaba Isshiki,” Sae said. “She had some research that would help with a case I’m working on.”

Sojiro grumbled. “Kid’s eatin’ her curry.”

“Oh?”

“Sorry, Miss Niijima. I was friends with Wakaba and nothing more.”

“Is that why you adopted her daughter?” Keiko cringed at how pointed Sae worded the question.

“Futaba’s got nothing to do with-”

“If you have anything from Wakaba, I need you to let me know,” Sae cut him off. “I’m not here for an interrogation.” She stood up, finishing her coffee. “You’ll be seeing me again.” She stormed through the front door and drove off.

“Your girlfriend’s sister, eh?” Sojiro was right back to normal after Sae left. “Think I could make us in-laws?”

Keiko was at a loss for words. “I’m-”

Ren walked down the stairs as she was speaking, dressed in his school uniform. He noticed Keiko’s stammering and Sojiro’s scowl.

“What did I miss?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know if I've ever been more nervous to post a chapter in my life. Please let me know what you think. I've literally never written a romance this involved before. It just works so god damn well.
> 
> I don't have much else to say about this chapter. I'd rather let it speak for itself.


	10. Do It

_ Wednesday, June 29, After School _

Keiko didn’t want to wait for her first date with Makoto. She prided herself in her patience, but time in between being asked out and actually going out might kill her, Keiko thought. She sat in the courtyard, trying not to look upset, instead looking utterly miserable. She didn’t feel like going home yet, and she didn’t feel like going to LeBlanc. Keiko didn’t feel like doing anything. She’d become so reliant on Makoto’s companionship, and she was again busy with the Phantom Thieves.

They’d gotten to hang out a few times since she joined, mostly at night. Sae was making it home most nights, so there was no reason for Keiko to stay over. 

Sae was more than happy to let Keiko stay over, although she didn’t know her sister had a girlfriend. She laughed when Makoto asked her if a friend could stay over. Keiko had been over to study, and Sae told a mildly embarrassing story about Makoto’s fear of the dark. Keiko thought it was cute, and it made her self conscious that she couldn’t hold her girlfriend’s hand when she reacted with a pout.

Makoto’s busy schedule was proving to be a problem. She knew Makoto was a planner, but who schedules a date two weeks out? And she demanded to still be involved with the newspaper when Keiko tried to lighten her load. ‘We’ve been together for a week and we still haven’t been on a date.’ Was it even real if they hadn’t been on a date? They hadn’t even kissed unless Keiko was counting the forehead kisses she stole while Makoto was sleeping. She had a sneaking suspicion that Makoto knew, and wasn’t telling her.

Makoto was perpetually exhausted. The Phantom Thieves had made good progress through the palace, but she didn’t know when they’d be done. Keiko couldn’t blame Makoto if she wanted to hold off on their date until they were out of the woods with Kaneshiro, but that didn’t mean she had to be happy about it. Keiko let out a loud sigh, and she didn’t care who heard. Everyone thought of her as high-strung anyway. Why not add being a mope to the list?

She was shaken out of her thoughts, and her failed attempts at studying when somebody said her name.

“Kasumi,” she greeted. “How long have you been sitting there?”

“A little under a minute,” she chirped. “I was timing it. I wanted to see how long until you noticed.”

“Sorry,” Keiko replied. 

“Are you okay?” ‘I’m doing great, Kasumi, I’m only so lonely that it’s crippling and my girlfriend is fighting the metaphysical manifestation of a mafioso’s evil.’

“I’m not,” Keiko replied. She’d been told multiple times by many people that she needed to be more trusting of others. “I’m just having a bad stretch.”

“I noticed Makoto isn’t with you. Did you two have a fight?” Kasumi held a concerned expression.

“I wish,” Keiko quipped, and Kasumi gave her a questioning look. “Sorry. She’s been training me in self-defense, so we actually fight all the time.”

“Oh!” Kasumi smiled back. “Like, sparring!” Kasumi’s words became very muffled, very briefly, “used to box together to help with conditioning for gymnastics.”

Keiko stuck her pinky in her ear, thinking something was wrong with her hearing. “Makoto teaches me a little bit of everything. We haven’t done boxing, necessarily, but she’s taught me a few different punches.”

“Well, if Makoto can’t work out with you today, I could,” Kasumi said. “I don’t have practice today, so I have time.”

Kasumi’s kindness relaxed Keiko a little. “Let’s do it.” 

Keiko packed up her things and they started to walk towards the exit, but before they could leave the courtyard, they ran into a new teacher that Keiko hadn’t spent much time around. 

“Yoshizawa-san,” the brown-haired man said. He was tall, maybe a little taller than Ren, and skinny bordering on fit. Keiko had heard of him from some of the more vapid girls gushing over his looks. He had a nice voice. That stuck out to Keiko more than anything. “How have you been?”

“I’ve been much better lately,” Kasumi bowed. “Thank you, Dr. Maruki.”

He looked at Keiko in some kind of recognition. “I don’t recall us meeting. I’m Dr. Maruki, the school’s counselor. You can just call me Doc if you’d like.” He had a friendly expression and a voice that put her at ease. 

“It’s nice to meet you, Doc.” Keiko said. “I’m sorry. I never got to do an introduction story on you.”

“I’ve only been here a few weeks,” Doc said. “I’ll have time to sit down and talk to you tomorrow after school if you’d like.”

“That would be great,” Keiko said. Rare was it for someone to endear themselves to her this quickly, but there was something nice about him. He had a good vibe going, maybe. 

“It’s a plan, then,” Doc said, and they parted ways. 

Keiko and Kasumi made small talk on their way to Protein Lovers. The walk from Shibuya Station to Central Street wasn’t long, but it allowed them to catch up on some things they’d missed in each other’s lives since the last time they’d talked. 

“I have to ask, Keiko-senpai,” Kasumi said. “You and Makoto seem a lot, erm,” she paused, searching for the right word. “More intimate lately.”

Keiko startled. Has it been that noticeable? She thought they’d kept things to a minimum in public. The last thing either of them needed at school was the rumor mill to pick up on their relationship. “Uh,” by stuttering, Keiko assumed she’d given up the goat. “We’re together.”

She had no idea if Kasumi was down with that kind of thing: It still wasn’t socially acceptable, although as long as it was kept under wraps, it was normal that people wouldn’t say anything. 

“Keiko!” She stepped back as Kasumi wrapped her in a hug. “I’m so happy!”

“Uh,” Keiko said in a strained voice. Kasumi let go. “You’re way stronger than you look.”

“Sorry,” Kasumi chirped. “I’m just so glad you two figured it out.”

“Excuse me?”

“Oh, Ren and I noticed months ago.” Was Kasumi grinning? ‘Is she teasing me? Am I getting teased by fucking Kasumi Yoshizawa?’

“How obvious was it?” Keiko gave a nervous laugh. She was normally good at keeping a cool head, so hopefully what Kasumi thought was obvious was just something innocuous.

“Obvious enough for Ren and me to notice, but not obnoxiously so,” Kasumi said. “I think it was more obvious after Ren-senpai pointed it out. He was really rooting for you two.”

“Huh.” Keiko swore that Ren had a crush on Makoto. “I didn’t realize that.”

“Have you told him?” Keiko really enjoyed how much joy Kasumi’s eyes held. She longed to one day be that happy for another person. ‘Another lesson I need to learn.’ “He’ll be over the moon.”

“The night she asked me, he was the one that told me to go see her,” Keiko admitted. “I think she told him beforehand.”

They reached Protein Lovers and went inside, with Keiko greeting the receptionist and paying the fee for both of them.

“We can stick to some sparring if you’d like,” Keiko said. “I don’t know enough to really teach you anything, but if you know how to throw punches already, we can kind of work around that.”

Keiko made the decision that they should probably use headgear, just in case, because she didn’t know how well Kasumi knew what she was doing.

15 minutes later, it turned out Kasumi knew what she was doing quite well. Any punches above the shoulder stopped just shy of being damaging, and anything below was hard, with surprising power. Keiko landed a few shots of her own, but she was more in it for the workout than the victory. Nobody won when sparring anyway, or at least she told herself that. Makoto knocked Keiko on her ass nearly every time they sparred. Keiko tried to keep things simple with Kasumi. There was no need to throw off her friend.

They were both huffing and puffing, Keiko struggling a bit more than Kasumi. She was in amazing condition, Keiko noticed. It must be the gymnastics.

“How did you get so good at pulling your punches?” Keiko asked. Kasumi’s ability to throw real looking and feeling punches that didn’t connect was actually incredible. She could have been a stuntwoman.

Kasumi blushed and spoke, but the first part was again muffled. “Taught me. She really liked pro wrestling. I think it might’ve been her dream career after gymnastics.”

Keiko had zero knowledge of pro wrestling, and while she didn’t quite catch who Kasumi was talking about, she assumed it was Sumire. “That’s a different hobby,” Keiko said

“It was a lot of fun,” Kasumi said. “We would stage fights around our house, and you know my dad. He loved that.”

“He’s quite the showman,” Keiko said, and Kasumi smiled softly.

“He always goaded her on,” Kasumi said with a chuckle. “I remember when she did a moonsault off the couch and ended up with a concussion.”

“She did a what?”

“Uh, a backflip, basically.” Kasumi shrugged and looked around. “I would show you, but we don’t really have a good place to jump from here. Remind me at school some time.”

“Is it that easy?”

“It’s easy for me,” Kasumi said, and it was the closest she’d ever sounded to arrogant. “I could teach you, though. I think you’re a better athlete than you give yourself credit for.”

“I’m a bookworm at heart,” Keiko shrugged.

“A bookworm that knocked out a guy twice her size,” Kasumi corrected. “Ren and I talk.”

“When’s the wedding?”

“You can’t just say that!” Kasumi protested, and Keiko knew she won the teasing battle for the day. 

“Thank you, Kasumi,” Keiko said as they left Protein Lovers. “You really helped me today.”

“Anything for one of my two favorite senpais,” Kasumi said with a friendly smile.

Someone clearing their throat interrupted the exchange. It was a man in a shiny purple shirt that Kasumi later told Keiko looked like something Chris Jericho would wear to the ring, and his hair was dyed a dirty blond. It was probably bleached at some point, but he looked awful. His eyes were dead and his voice would have screamed “cigarettes” if he was capable of screaming anything.

“You kids lookin’ for a job?”

“Why? Is the New York Times hiring?” Keiko quipped, but Kasumi gave her a concerned look. ‘Right. No sarcasm.’

“Huh? Look, I’m just saying. This is easy money.” The man stepped closer and the two girls backed up.

“We aren’t interested,” Keiko said firmly. 

“You sure about that, sweet thing?” Keiko’s skin crawled. “I bet you could do all  _ sorts _ of jobs-”

He made a strange noise and turned around. Keiko noticed a black cat with a yellow collar and blue eyes attached to him, claws digging into the man’s skin. The man swore and screamed. 

“What the fuck? Where’d this cat-” a familiar blond male friend appeared around the corner and shoved the man onto his back. The cat scurried off and the two girls took off in the same direction as Ryuji. The man wasn’t able to catch up, and Keiko was thankful she’d started training. She wasn’t sure she’d have been able to keep up with Kasumi or Ryuji otherwise.

Ryuji ran to the station and to the accessway that crossed the street to another part of the station. The Phantom Thieves waited for them there.

Keiko suddenly didn’t care who knew, and ran right to Makoto, who wrapped her in her arms.

“Ryuji,” Keiko said, her head leaning against her girlfriend’s shoulder. “Thank you.”

“It’s the least I can do,” he said. “‘Sides, I still don’t think we’re even.”

Keiko gave him a questioning look.

“You got the school off my back,” he said, rubbing the back of his head. “Dunno if I’ll ever repay that one.”

“It was the right thing to do.” He nodded.

“What are you all doing here?” Kasumi asked.

“Uh, we just happened to run into each other,” Ann lied, poorly. Her voice was an octave higher than necessary. 

“I saw that scumbag comin’ after you guys.” Ryuji was a much better liar. “I gave RenRen here a call and he had Kitagawa with ‘im already.”

“Excuse me,” Kasumi interrupted. “Did you just say  _ RenRen?” _

Ren’s face turned a deep red.

“Only Ryuji can call me that,” he mumbled.

“Or else what, RenRen-senpai, are you gonna stop being my friend?” 

‘Oh. Oh, my.’ Keiko and Makoto shared a knowing glance. 

Ren was in over his head.

The group split minutes later, Ryuji of all people saving the day when it came to keeping the Phantom Thieves secret. Makoto confided in Keiko that they really struggled to get him to keep it under wraps.

“Sis is working overnight again,” Makoto said quietly. “Think you could-”

“I would love to.” Keiko didn’t let her finish the question. “Let’s go to my place so I can grab my things.”

Makoto hadn’t smiled that big since the night they made their decision. Keiko decided tonight could be their unofficial first date. The couple boarded the train to Yongen-Jaya, with the idea that they’ll only be there for a few minutes to grab Keiko’s things and maybe a meal at LeBlanc. Keiko was disappointed that Makoto met Sojiro without her there to ensure the old timer was on his best behavior. It probably didn’t matter: Unless her and Ren were alone, Makoto probably didn’t do much talking about Keiko. They’d both agreed to rely on plausible deniability in case Sae or Keiko’s parents found out.

Keiko had gotten far too used to her parents not being home after school, so she was a bit frustrated when the house wasn’t empty. Keiko wanted to send Makoto back to LeBlanc to wait for her because it was kind of early to meet the parents but then she remembered the situation was more complicated than that. ‘It might look shadier that I keep going out with a friend I refuse to have around them…’

Keiko didn’t even know why she was worried. Her mom and dad were obviously down with whatever crazy weird shit they were into. Was having a daughter with a girlfriend really going to be a sticking point? 

“Keiko,” Makoto broke her out of her thoughts. “Do you want me to wait at LeBlanc?”

Keiko shook her head. “No. You should meet my parents. Just, maybe don’t tell them about us yet.”

Makoto nodded and they entered the house. Keiko had a stray thought that maybe her parents were getting it on again, but thankfully, they weren’t. Her and Makoto walked in on a sweet scene, Keiko’s father laying on the couch with her mother cuddled close to him, an arm slung over his shoulder. ‘They must’ve been able to get out of work on time,’ Keiko thought.

“You’ll have to meet them another time,” she whispered to Makoto, who laughed when Keiko’s father let out an abrupt snore that cut through the room. It didn’t wake her mother, which made it funnier, somehow. Makoto nodded with a smile and they went upstairs so Keiko could grab her bag. 

Keiko’s father was still snoring on the couch when they made it downstairs, but her mother was elsewhere. They left before she could come back to question them, Keiko instead sending her a text letting her know where she was going. 

The familiar bell chimed and the usual greeting came from the man behind the counter as the girls entered LeBlanc.

“Hey, kid,” Sojiro greeted. “Kids, I should say.”

“How’s it going?” Keiko asked, more in the sense of a greeting than actually asking the question.

Makoto’s greeting was more polite, but she didn’t know Sojiro as well as Keiko did. She’ll have to break her girlfriend of her polite habits. Sojiro was more fun when he was flustered.

“It’s just great,” Sojiro grumbled. “Every time I look up, there’s another kid coming in to be a pain in the ass.”

Keiko grinned. “Ever think it’s just your charm bringing in all the pretty girls?”

Sojiro rolled his eyes. “I’m old enough to be their father.”

“Hey, Sae isn’t all that older than us and you-”

“Excuse me, what?” Makoto interrupted. 

Sojiro wilted under her glare, then chuckled. “I didn’t realize you were the girl Keiko was talking about.” 

“Oh,” Makoto stammered a bit, then looked at Keiko. “Does he know?”

Keiko nodded. “I didn’t mean to tell him. That morning Sae dropped me off, she came in for a visit and I nearly slipped up.”

“Good for you two,” Sojiro interrupted. He stepped away to continue preparing their curry, then came back with a plate and two cups.

The bell chimed and Ren walked through the door wearing a giant, dreamy smile.

“You’re back,” Sojiro greeted. “You okay kid? You look like you just saw a woman naked for the first time.”

The smile snapped away from his face and he gave Sojiro a dopey, dazed look. “Not quite,” and a smaller smile returned to his face. “You two figure out if you’re in love yet?”

“Ren!” Keiko and Makoto shared a look, realizing they jinxed each other.

“Hey, Sojiro,” Keiko spoke cautiously. “Could you go somewhere else while we murder Ren?”

“I-” He looked at his ward. “You kinda deserve it, kid.” 

Makoto’s calm voice visibly shook Ren. “I’d like to discover if a coffee grinder works well on human remains.”

There was a series of mews coming from his bag and Makoto burst out laughing, leaving Sojiro and Keiko sharing a look. 

“You okay?” Keiko asked, rubbing her girlfriend’s back.

“I’m fine,” Makoto said, regaining her composure, then looking mortified when she realized Sojiro didn’t know Morgana could talk. “I just-” she stammered. “I just thought about your date with Akechi again.”

“Your date with-” And then it was Ren’s turn to laugh, and Keiko’s turn to stew in her barstool.

Her and Makoto finished their curry. Keiko ushered them out rapidly, lest she be embarrassed any further. 

The Niijima apartment was gloriously empty when they got there, and there was much Makoto needed to fill Keiko in on.

Keiko took a seat on the sofa while Makoto went to change out of her school clothes. Keiko had already changed at home, and she wasn’t quite ready for pajamas just yet. It was fairly early in the night. The sun was still up, but setting, and it was then that Keiko realized that Makoto rarely opened the shades in the living room.

She hadn’t spent much time in her girlfriend’s bedroom, but she remembered the windows being open, and the apartment being high up enough that they had a nice view of the city. 

Makoto came back to find Keiko leaning over the couch, reaching the blinds in an attempt to open them. “What are you doing?”

Keiko’s voice was strained because she couldn’t quite reach the drawstring. “I’m too damn short!” She cursed whoever decided the string to the shades needed to be up higher towards the top of the window. 

Makoto rolled her eyes and came up next to her, reaching the string easily, then she gave Keiko a kiss on the cheek. “You need to be better about asking for help.” 

“I just wanted the window open,” Keiko pouted. “It shouldn’t have been that hard.”

“Why’d you need the shade open, anyway?” Makoto asked.

Keiko didn’t have a good answer as to why it was a big deal. “I like looking out the window?” She kept an upward inflection at the end, letting Makoto know she didn’t have a great reason. “It’s weird that I’ve never seen it open.”

“I usually like it closed because I study here. I try and limit distractions.”

Keiko nodded. “I understand. But it’s hard for me to be this high up and not want to look out. My house is surrounded by grey concrete. Being able to open a window and see the sun is a dream.”

“I don’t need to see the sun, you brighten my day enough as it is,” Makoto said, then immediately hid her face when Keiko started laughing. 

“You’ve been taking lessons from Ren?” It was a good line, Keiko thought, but it was obviously not something Makoto would have come up with on her own. Was Makoto whimpering? ‘If I’m too damn short, she’s too damn cute.’

“I have been,” she said quietly. “Taking lessons from Ren.”

“Wait, are you actually taking lessons on how to-” She stopped. “I believe you. That sounds like something you would do.” Makoto wilted under Keiko’s crooked grin. 

“Stop,” Makoto said, elongating the word. “Don’t make fun of me.”

“I haven’t said anything making fun of you,” Keiko teased.

Makoto covered her face with her hands and leaned back into the sofa, backing up so she was laying at one end while Keiko sat at the other. “I can tell,” Makoto said. “You really want to.”

“You’re embarrassed enough without me saying anything,” Keiko shrugged. “Why work any harder than I have to?”

Makoto closed her eyes and turned over so she was facing the couch cushion. “You’re a jerk.”

Keiko grinned, although Makoto couldn’t see it, and reached over, lightly tickling her feet. Makoto jerked out of her spot and scrambled across the room yelling “No!” over and over again.

“You can’t do that!”

Keiko’s maniacal laugh drove Makoto nuts. “Good to know you’re ticklish,” Keiko said. 

“I’ll never trust you again,” Makoto said with a pout that didn’t reach her eyes. Keiko could tell she was plotting.

Keiko didn’t want to be on the receiving end of a Makoto revenge plan, so she calmed her laughter. “Fine. I’ll behave.” She let out a deep breath, trying to relax herself. “I got my view, so I’m happy. Thank you, Makoto. You’re the best girlfriend ever.”

Makoto returned to the couch, sitting next to Keiko, looking out the window with her. They didn’t speak for a little bit because they didn’t need to.

Makoto broke the silence, though.

“We’re sending Kaneshiro’s calling card tomorrow.” 

Keiko’s breath hitched. She didn’t quite understand what that entailed, but Ren looked awful the days following Kamoshida’s and Madarame’s calling cards. 

“Ren told me you should be in Shibuya after school, somewhere safe and visible, if you want a good story.” This wasn’t Makoto as a girlfriend, and Keiko had to admit she was a bit uncomfortable at how professional Makoto was sounding. “He suggested Untouchable or the beef bowl shop.”

“I can take care of myself, Makoto,” Keiko said. “I had a great teacher.” 

Makoto didn’t return her confident smile. “I’d appreciate you not going alone. I’m going with you.”

“I can take Kasumi,” Keiko offered. “We’ve been hanging out when you’re too busy with your friends anyway.”

Makoto’s eyes showed worry. “That would make me even more nervous.”

“Why?” Keiko didn’t like feeling like some kind of damsel in distress. “I am not some war-time housewife waiting for her husband to come home.”

Makoto’s cheeks exploded in red. “That’s not what I’m asking you to do.”

“Good, so get on with it,” Keiko said, setting her position. “What do you want me to do?”

_ “Ren _ wants you to watch Central Street.” Makoto emphasized it was Ren’s idea, and not hers. “See who reacts strongly, who doesn’t react, who gets excited. If you could tell us, and we could watch out for them in the future, you’d be a great help.”

The words sounded rehearsed, like Makoto was reading Keiko some kind of death warrant. 

Keiko nodded. “I can do that. I might try and get a story out of it.”

Makoto nodded sadly, and Keiko knew she wasn’t comfortable with this idea.

“I trust Ren, Mako.” Keiko was scared, but she believed she would be okay. “I can’t do, uh, whatever it is you guys do. But I want to help.”

“We’re putting you in danger,” Makoto said, as Keiko pulled one arm behind Makoto, and another arm in front, wrapping her in a hug. 

“It’s no more dangerous than charging into a mafia headquarters,” Keiko said. Makoto couldn’t see it, but she was smiling. “You were okay, and I will be, too.”

“If anything happens, I’m going to-”

“You’re going to do nothing.” Keiko interrupted her. “No part of this is Ren’s fault. Don’t even think of blaming him.”

“But it was his idea.” Keiko could see pain in her eyes.

She pulled Makoto out of their snuggle so she could look at her directly. “Do you think I needed to be told to run towards the action?”

Makoto shook her head. 

“Then don’t worry about me. I want you to focus on fighting.” Makoto looked up at her, and Keiko nearly melted. She’d never get used to a soft look coming from crimson eyes. “I’m the one that should be worried.”

“You have nothing to worry about. We have this covered,” Makoto said with confidence. “I won’t let this greedy asshole-” Makoto stopped, and Keiko gave her a confused look. “You really like it when I talk like that.”

“What?”

“You get the same look in your eyes that the creepy old men at the gym get.”

Keiko tried to look anywhere else but at her girlfriend. “I, erm, uh,” she couldn’t find the words. 

“It’s sweet,” Makoto said. “I didn’t realize I’d ever be okay with someone looking at me like that.”

“I didn’t mean to-”

“I mean it when I say like it.” Makoto used a serious tone that Keiko was desperately trying to pretend didn’t drive her wild. 

“Okay.” 

“You’re cute.” Makoto kissed Keiko on the cheek, then leaned her head on her shoulder. She could feel Keiko’s look after she did it. “Payback for you stealing forehead kisses.” Makoto chuckled at Keiko’s wordless, shocked look. “I’m a light sleeper, but it’s a nice way to wake up.”

Makoto was still looking up, and Keiko felt like she was waiting for a real, first kiss. She was too nervous to take initiative, so she didn’t.

“We should-” Keiko started to stand up. “I’m behind on homework. We should study.”

Makoto tried to mask her disappointment, but Keiko could tell it was there. “You’re right. I’ve not had much time to work either.”

It took longer than normal for them to complete their homework, because the shared looks and knowing smiles from Makoto prevented Keiko from concentrating. Keiko didn’t know it was possible to be this on edge and not be in danger.

===

_ Thursday, June 30, Lunchtime _

Keiko wouldn’t be available after school, so she decided to see if she could give up her lunch to get the interview with Dr. Maruki finished. As it turned out, she didn’t even have to worry about missing a meal, because Maruki provided snacks.

“Are you trying to butter me up for positive coverage?”

He shot her a concerned look. “That’s not something I would typically think about.”

“Oh. I was going to tell you it was working,” Keiko chuckled. Maruki seemed like a kind man, if not a bit naive. He was perfect for a post-Kamoshida Shujin Academy. The school was desperate for a male authority figure who could provide comfort. “Anyway, can we do the interview now? Something came up after school, and I don’t really know what to expect.”

“Is it anything I can help with?”

“Not really.” Keiko shrugged. “It’s just a news tip. It might end up being nothing, but I’d be failing my readers if I didn’t check into it.”

“How dedicated!” Maruki replied with a smile. “I can respect that. I have time right now, if you’d like to conduct the interview.”

“Great! Thank you, Doc.” Keiko chirped. “You’re really saving my butt.” Maruki nodded and smiled, and she started the interview. “What brings you to Shujin?” It was a simple question that always got a varied answer.

“Other than needing work, I have experience working with kids and I want to make a difference,” Maruki said. “There’s often much in the way of needless suffering at this age. I feel the world can be a better place if there’s someone there to listen, and offer help when they can.”

“What do you mean by needless suffering?” That piqued Keiko’s interest.

“It can be anything,” Maruki replied. “But much of the time, a person’s frame of mind can be altered by a shift in point of view. My aim is to shift that point of view to make their life easier. There’s no simple answer to aid in recovery from a traumatic event, but I’ve got a proven track record.”

“What were you doing before Shujin hired you?”

“I was researching a field that I won’t bore you with,” Maruki said. “It had a lot to do with the workings of the human mind, but they pulled my funding, so I’m left doing much of the research on my own time.”

“That’s a shame.” The bell rang, and Keiko didn’t have any extra time. “I wish we could talk about it further, but I have to get to class.”

“Stop by any time,” Maruki said. “I have a tendency to ramble, but I’d love to have another ear to bend about my research. Or whatever else you’d like to talk about.”

“Thank you for your time, Doc,” Keiko said, then exited the room, returning to class.

===

_ After School _

Ren didn’t give Keiko or Makoto a time to be in Shibuya, so they decided to meet at the crepes shop that Ann kept recommending because it had outdoor seating. That would allow them to keep track of who discovered the calling card and who noticed. Keiko found herself worried that it would blow her, and their, cover if she immediately started walking around asking people questions about the Phantom Thieves, so she was hoping for an over the top reaction from somebody. She brought up this concern to Ren over text message, and he agreed. Her getting a story wasn’t for their benefit, he told her. He just assumed she would like to be in on the plan, since she was in the know anyway.

Keiko appreciated the heads up, along with how much it lessened the weight on her shoulders. 

The weight on Makoto’s shoulders, however, wasn’t going away any time soon. They learned quickly that the strawberry crepes were much too sweet for either of them, so they split Makoto’s sausage crepes, which would have been fine if it didn’t mean having to sit close to each other and share a plate. Keiko normally enjoyed being close, but Makoto couldn’t sit still and her ever-vigilant eyes led her to accidentally headbutt Keiko twice. 

It wouldn’t have been that big of a deal if Keiko wasn’t wearing her glasses. Makoto was lucky they were bent, instead of broken. 

“I need you to calm down, babe,” Keiko said. Using any kind of pet name always worked to distract Makoto from whatever had her feeling anxious. “Your part of this is already done.” She kept her voice as low as she could to not look suspicious.

“I know,” Makoto sighed. “I’m more nervous about tomorrow than I am anything else.”

“You have no reason to be nervous.” Keiko scooted closer, feeling a strong urge to grab her hand but afraid to do so in public. “There’s not a single person I trust more. Even when I hated you, and thought you were some spineless pushover with her head in the ground, I still trusted you enough to ask for your help.”

Makoto’s eyes narrowed, but she smiled briefly. It was an odd look, Keiko thought. There was comfort behind the smile. “You don’t need to remind me that you thought I was a spineless pushover.”

Keiko grinned back. “Was I wrong?”

“No.” Makoto replied quietly, her voice trailing off. Keiko thought Makoto was doing it for some kind of dramatic effect, but then she looked and noticed cards falling from the sky: Ren must’ve gotten on top of one of the buildings, because about 100 cards floated through Central Street. One landed right in the leftover strawberry crepes they were saving for Ann. 

Makoto gave Keiko a serious look, ruined seconds later when Keiko asked if she thought Ann would still want the leftovers. Makoto rolled her eyes and lightly pushed Keiko towards the street.

“Get to work,” and Keiko shot back a big smile.

The reaction she wanted happened immediately, and she was able to pull out her phone and snag a picture of a man bending over to check on the card. He was wearing black pants and a dress shirt that was mildly tacky, although nothing compared to the dead-eyed man they’d met yesterday. Keiko had already picked up a calling card as she made her way towards the man, but asking him what he found was a good way of leading into an interview. 

“Excuse me, sir,” Keiko said. “What’s that you picked up?”

He looked startled, but gave a friendly smile back. “Oh, I just found this card here. It looks like another calling card from the Phantom Thieves.”

“You don’t sound surprised at all,” Keiko noticed. 

“No,” the man sighed. “I suppose I’m not. The Phantom Thieves have saved my life, so I’m glad to see they’re still helping people.” 

Keiko knew this wasn’t her objective, but this could make an amazing story, so she jumped ship.

“I’m actually a news reporter, if you wouldn’t mind going on record talking about it,” she said, realizing that there was a strong chance he’d say no.

“I think they’ve earned to hear how grateful I am,” the man nodded. “Since I don’t have a good way to contact them, this might be the best opportunity I have to show them.”

“I should ask your name first,” Keiko said.

“Natsuhiko Nakanohara,” he offered a hand. “It’s nice to meet you…”

“Keiko Miyahara,” she shook it. “How did the Phantom Thieves help you?”

“My life was spiralling,” he said. His expression didn’t show the hurt Keiko expected to follow those words. “I’d been kicked out of the only consistent home I’d ever known and my ex-girlfriend couldn’t handle my constant negativity and depression.”

“I’m sorry,” Keiko said. That sounded soul-crushing. 

“It has a happier ending,” Nakanohara assured. “My ex put my name on the Phansite, asking them to get me to stop stalking her. The road I was going down had no positive outcome. I was following her everywhere she went, missing work to make sure I didn’t miss a moment. I don’t know what my intention was. I can’t really explain my actions. There’s no acceptable reason for any of them.”

“Did they change your heart?”

Nakanohara nodded. “They did, and it’s like a cloud has been lifted. This wave of bitterness that covered my every action has died down, and I’m now free to move on with my life.”

“Is it safe to say that you’re pro-Phantom Thieves?”

“I don’t have a question in my mind that they are just,” Nakanohara replied. “After seeing the fallout from Kamoshida and Madarame, I have no doubts that whoever this Junya Kaneshiro is will be brought to justice.”

“Thank you, Nakanohara-san. I appreciate your time.”

“Any time.” He bowed and left, walking into the beef bowl shop.

Meanwhile, the rest of Shibuya was in a minor form of chaos. Shady looking mobsters scrambled to collect the calling cards and police were on the scene searching for whoever dumped them, because the police were every bit as much of a victim of the Phantom Thieves as the criminals. Keiko returned to Makoto, who had finished the leftovers they were supposed to be saving for Ann.

“Sorry,” she blushed. “It was like watching dinner-theater. I needed a snack.” 

Keiko rolled her eyes, and they went their separate ways. Makoto had a long day ahead of her tomorrow, and Keiko had two articles she needed finished before Saturday. If she finished them tonight, she could spend tomorrow night with Makoto.

===

_ Thursday, June 30, After School _

“Keiko-senpai, do you want to work out again today?” She startled from her normal spot in the courtyard by the vending machines.

‘Sorry, Kasumi, I’m going to be too busy freaking out because my girlfriend is running headfirst into danger again.’ “I’m sorry, Kasumi,” Keiko sighed. ‘I’m just not up to acting today.’ “I don’t think I’ll be able to focus well enough today. You wouldn’t get much out of it.”

“Did something happen?” Keiko regretted admitting to anything almost immediately because of how Kasumi’s expression fell. She was definitely an empath.

Keiko had to think carefully on how to answer this question. “It’s dumb, Sumi-chan. You don’t need to worry about it.”

“It doesn’t seem like it’s nothing, Senpai.” Kasumi gave a reassuring smile. “You can rely on me.”

‘Does she have to use those exact words?’ Keiko had to keep her self-admonishment to herself. She’d spent so much time trying to get Makoto to open up that she’d feel like a hypocrite shutting out somebody she trusted. “I’m just worried about Makoto,” Keiko said. “She’s, well,” Keiko didn’t know how to explain what was happening without  _ explaining what was happening. _ “She’s charging headfirst into something dangerous again.”

“That doesn’t sound like Makoto,” Kasumi said. 

Keiko agreed, but she didn’t want Kasumi to know that. “No, it doesn’t, not until something or someone she cares about is in danger.”

“Are-” Kasumi stammered. “Are you in danger?”

‘That’s a loaded question,’ Keiko thought, but she didn’t want to get into it. “Not me, personally. The school, she thinks. And I agree.”

Kasumi nodded, then shifted gears. “Did you hear about the calling cards in Shibuya yesterday?”

“Makoto and I were there.” Keiko tried to stray as far away as she could from lying. “I think it freaked out the scumbags there.”

“Is that what Makoto is charging into?”

Keiko froze and hoped Kasumi didn’t catch it. “What?”

“The scary men in Shibuya,” Kasumi said. She gave no notion that she suspected Makoto of being a Phantom Thief, giving Keiko some relief. “We talked to her after Ryuji helped us get away. Is Makoto going after him?”

“No,” Keiko relied on a technical truth. “She’s just-” 

An interruption came in the form of a phone call from an unknown number. Keiko excused herself to answer it.

“This is Miyahara,” she answered.

“Have you heard from Makoto?”

Keiko’s heart rate jumped. How did Sae get her number? Probably from the last paragraph of every story she wrote, because she’d leave her number asking for news tips.

“She had plans after school, why?” 

Sae sounded a bit panicky, but calmed down considerably after Keiko sounded confident she was okay. “I have another overnight at work. I’d stopped home to get some of my things and noticed she wasn’t here.”

“Oh,” Keiko tried to think of a good lie. “She’s been helping me with the newspaper for the last couple of months. I have her out on assignment for a story right now.”

“I hadn’t realized Makoto was interested in journalism,” Sae said and Keiko really wanted to reply ‘she’s not’ sarcastically, but she didn’t. “That will look great on a resume. Can you make sure it doesn’t get in the way of her studies?”

“I wouldn’t have asked for her help if I thought it would.” 

“Thank you, Keiko.” Sae’s voice sounded tired. “Are you staying with Makoto again tonight?”

“If that’s okay with you.”

“I’d appreciate it. She sleeps better when she has someone around. Have a good night, Keiko.”

“Bye, Sae-san.”

Keiko peered back around the corner to find Kasumi standing there, looking like she’d been caught spying. “You didn’t have to spy.”

“Sorry, Keiko-senpai. I-”

“You’re apologizing for being nosy to the nosiest person on the planet.” Keiko chuckled. “Don’t worry about it.” 

Kasumi didn’t respond, and instead remained looking guilty, which in turn made Keiko feel guilty for making Kasumi feel guilty and it was just this whole miserable circle of pain that neither of them could escape. 

“I’ll tell you what, Sumi-chan,” Kasumi always brightened up at the nickname. “All three of us can meet at LeBlanc tomorrow after school. I’m sure everything will be better by then.”

“I’m holding you to that, Senpai.” She practically skipped off, and Keiko couldn’t help but laugh a little. She got too much of a kick out of watching her and Ren dance around each other yesterday. Keiko wanted to see it again.

===

_ Evening _

They made plans to meet at Shibuya Crossing, which meant Keiko had to stand there looking like a bump on a log waiting for her girlfriend to magically reappear. It wasn’t all lost, though, because Toranosuke Yoshida was giving a speech to a crowd. He might be No Good Tora, Keiko thought, but he was still a brilliant speaker, and he’d taken many strides towards rectifying his past wrongs. She disliked how much ire he drew when he was so forthcoming with admitting his past mistakes. 

Keiko would have stuck around to hear Yoshida’s speech, but she noticed a gold briefcase crushing a familiar black cat. The light would change any second, so she sprinted over, kicking the briefcase towards the curb and scooping up the kitty, who mewed over and over again, speaking words Keiko didn’t understand. She looked at where the briefcase now lay, at her girlfriend’s feet. 

Keiko set Morgana down on the sidewalk and he bulleted towards Ren.

That apparently earned Keiko a hug, which earned Ren a glare from Makoto.

“Thank you for saving Morgana, Keiko,” Keiko sensed Makoto’s jealousy, and wrapped her in a hug that might’ve been even more embarrassing than the one Ren gave her. Keiko couldn’t see Makoto’s face, but she heard snickers coming from Ryuji and Ren.

“Your welcome, Makoto.” Keiko then looked around at the Phantom Thieves. “Thank you, all of you.” 

Ren nodded. “We should all split up. We can meet at LeBlanc tomorrow.”

Makoto and Keiko went off in their own direction as the rest of the group scattered, hand in hand.

Keiko didn’t realize holding hands could be so exciting. They didn’t speak again until they were safely within the confines of the Niijima apartment.

Keiko set her bag on Makoto’s bed, then returned to the living room and took a seat on the couch. It took a minute for Makoto to return from the bathroom, but when she did, she sat right next to Keiko, closer than expected.

“So.” Keiko leaned her head on Makoto’s shoulder.

“So?” Makoto looked down. 

‘Do it, pussy,’ Keiko kept thinking. ‘She’s not going to. Dumb.’ “I assume that golden briefcase was the treasure?”

Makoto nodded quickly, nervously, Keiko would call it. “Yes.”

“How did you get it?”

“We fought a giant steel pig and a couple of flies,” Makoto said, and Keiko could tell she was chewing the underside of her lip. “I think I called him a filthy fly on dirty money.”

“Fucking nerd.” Keiko chuckled. “That sounds like you, though.” She brought her arm over, resting it in the spot between them, searching for a free hand, and took it. “Did you get to blow shit up?”

Makoto nodded and looked around the room. “It was so amazing.”

“You’re allowed to be excited, Makoto,” Keiko said. “It sounds like this was a big step for you guys.”

“We still don’t know if it worked.” Makoto resituated herself, letting go of Keiko’s right hand, but trading it for her left. 

Keiko understood where the anxiety came from. “How long does it normally take?”

“Ren said Kamoshida took a couple days. Madarame was a few more.” Makoto sighed. “Our deadline isn’t for another week and a half.”

“You won’t know before then?” Keiko could feel the concern coming from Makoto’s sigh. 

Makoto shrugged. “I have no idea.”

“That has to be killing you.” 

They sat in silence for a long time. Then Keiko laid down and stretched her legs out over Makoto’s lap. Some time later, Makoto made her scoot, and they cuddled on the couch. 

Keiko and Makoto had both been snoring softly for a half hour when Makoto’s phone rang. She pushed Keiko to the floor, accidentally, then tripped over her, not used to sharing a nap with someone else. As if she wasn’t frazzled enough, Junya Kaneshiro was the name that appeared on the phone’s screen. 

“Hello?” Makoto said in a voice that tried to sound stern or tough but accomplished neither.

“What?” She waited another second, and then the line went dead.

Keiko paced, rubbing the ribs that accidentally got kicked when Makoto tripped over her. 

Makoto didn’t respond. She was too busy staring off into space as a smile crept across her face. Then she dropped her phone to the floor and Keiko flinched as Makoto attacked with force she’d never seen. She felt stupid when their lips met, and Makoto’s embrace caused her to melt.

‘Huh. That’s warmer and wetter than I thought it would be.’ It was a lame first thought after her first kiss. The next was lame in a different way. ‘Holy shit. I just kissed somebody!’

Makoto pulled away and her face was redder than Keiko knew was possible. Makoto was a blusher, but this was next level. She looked like an apple. “Uh, sorry. I got carried-”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “Don’t you dare apologize, unless you’re about to follow it with ‘I’m never doing that again.’”

“He called off the debt. He’s turning himself in.”

“So much for making us wait,” Keiko said. She might have quipped, but she was as relieved as anyone.

“I need to tell Ren.”

“I believe you have multiple things to tell Ren.”

“Shut it.”

“Make me.” And then they kissed again, creating a burgeoning issue that they might never not kiss again. They came up for air eventually.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe I sat on this chapter for a week before posting it. I actually forgot I finished it, otherwise, it probably would have gone up sooner. 
> 
> I'm fighting myself so hard to not have this fic devolve into fluff but goodness it's tough. It's not going to happen! I can do this! I can stick to the plot!
> 
> Please send help.
> 
> Let me know what you think. As stated previously, this is my first attempt ever at writing anything even remotely romantic in any way. I blame the characters for forcing me into it. They have a mind of their own.


	11. Vending Machine Coffee

_ Friday, July 1, Early Morning _

Keiko whined as Makoto’s arms left her waist, and frowned when Makoto laughed. They’d slept in a little later than Makoto was normally comfortable with, but sharing a bed with something she cared about was cozy enough to justify getting a few extra minutes of sleep, she confessed later.

“No school,” Keiko complained, trying to pull Makoto back into bed.

“Yes school,” Makoto sighed. “Come on.”

Keiko didn’t move.

The sighs were aplenty that morning. Makoto had her uniform on, hair untangled and shoes on, prepared to get to class before Keiko even thought of waking up. Even then, it took a bribe.

“I’ll buy you a yakisoba pan if you get moving.” Makoto tried to speak in a sweet voice, but she wasn’t accustomed to it and winced when it came out weird.

Keiko stretched and yawned. “‘Kay.” She held the last syllable longer than necessary. 

Makoto was impressed by how quickly Keiko could get ready for school. Keiko had her uniform on, teeth brushed, and hair out of her face in just a few minutes.

“How?” Makoto asked, slack-jawed.

The sleepiness in Keiko’s voice was still there, but she’d perked up quite a bit by the time Makoto could question her methods. “A good reporter is never late.”

Makoto started to speak and stopped, realizing nothing she could say would convince Keiko that there’s an easier way. She was up early enough that she had the coffee maker running, which seemed appropriate given Keiko rarely functioned at any time of day without coffee.

“What? If you show up late, you’ll never know what you missed.” Keiko shrugged. “I can’t trust others to give as detailed an account as I could give with my own two eyes.”

Makoto gave a small laugh and grabbed two cups as the pot finished filling. “You really never turn it off.”

Keiko shook her head. “Nope!” She made a face after her first sip of coffee but let it go after. It wasn’t bad coffee, just not as good as what she’d gotten used to. “Sojiro spoiled me.”

Makoto rolled her eyes and shifted the conversation. She didn’t want to get anywhere near a serious conversation, and Sojiro was guilty by association. “You know, I wouldn’t be surprised to find a detailed description of our first kiss on the front page.” 

“Huh? Oh, I would never do that,” Keiko said, taking Makoto’s joke seriously. “That’s a page three kind of story, right next to the horoscopes and the Been There, Done That and…” Keiko looked over and noticed Makoto’s glare. “I-uh. I won’t actually be doing that.”

===

_ After School _

Keiko didn’t much feel like hitting anything after school, but Makoto made her go to the gym anyway.

“That’s good! I’ve been meaning to get you using free weights soon, anyway.” Makoto chirped, potentially deliberately taking Keiko’s request for a day off as a request for a training regimen change. 

“That’s not what I-” Makoto cut her off before she could debate any further.

“Do your enemies take a day off?” Makoto raised an eyebrow.

“No, but-” 

“Now, let’s get changed and we can start with stretches.” Keiko hated how excited Makoto sounded. Makoto getting excited about a workout usually meant needing at least two days to sleep it off. They walked into the locker room and changed their clothes at their shared locker. 

Keiko sighed. “At least I don’t have to feel guilty about staring at your ass now,” she said out loud, not particularly intending for Makoto to hear her.

“What was that?” Makoto turned while she was putting her shirt back on.

“Nothing,” Keiko said. “It’s nothing. Let’s get this over with.”

It didn’t go as poorly as Keiko expected. She kept up well with Makoto, although she realized thinking she was catching up in the training department was a mistake. Watching Makoto go through her lifts was distracting, drawing a feeling somewhere between lust and fear from Keiko.

She felt like she’d still be trying to catch her breath for the rest of the week and Keiko really needed to get home because she had honest-to-god homework that she couldn’t let go. Makoto made her stick around for food, though, because apparently out-training a bad diet isn’t possible. ‘When did Makoto have time to start meal prepping?’ 

The apartment was empty as usual, although even if Sae were working a normal day she wouldn’t be home at this time. Makoto had pulled a box of pre-cooked food out of the fridge and reheated it. Keiko sat face down at the kitchen table, still not recovered from the intense workout. She didn’t think it was possible to feel any weaker than she had after those first few training sessions, but Keiko could barely move.

“You’re going to kill me,” she huffed. “Do you do anything halfway?” Makoto set a plate of reheated food in front of her. Chicken and veggies weren’t Keiko’s favorite, but at least the chicken didn’t seem overly dry and the vegetables weren’t overly soggy. 

“Nope,” Makoto shrugged. “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well.”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “You sound like a real narc right now.”

“You’re the one that wanted to write about our first kiss in a damn newspaper,” Makoto shot back with a look that made Keiko profoundly uncomfortable.

Keiko spoke meekly. “That was a joke-”

She laughed. “I know.”

“Can we go back to me teasing you relentlessly? That was more fun,” Keiko pleaded.

Makoto shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m enjoying this a lot more.”

===

_ Sunday, June 3, Morning _

“It’s not that I’m not happy to be with you, I just thought our first date would be somewhere that’s uh, not LeBlanc,” Makoto hesitated to say. 

“This isn’t where the date starts, dammit,” Keiko huffed. “I told you that already. I thought we’d get coffee to-go.”

“You just don’t want to drink vending machine coffee,” Makoto laughed, and Keiko’s eyes narrowed.

“That a problem, Prez?” 

“No,” Makoto backed off. “I can appreciate good coffee. Plus, I kind of had to come here to pick you up, anyway.”

The only reason Keiko even left Makoto’s apartment the previous night was because they agreed it would be weird to say they woke up in the same bed the morning of their first date. Neither of them slept well that night because just a few days of sleeping in each other’s arms got them used to it. Coffee was a necessity, Keiko thought, and she’d be damned if Makoto made her drink that rubbish from a vending machine again. Luckily, Makoto was quick to back off when it came to important things, like reporting and coffee. ‘She probably just knows better than to let me get going,’ Keiko mused.

“Hey, kids,” Sojiro greeted with a smile. “You two look nice.”

Neither of them knew how to accept a compliment, but Keiko was glad somebody noticed the dress she earned for helping Ohya. Makoto looked at her a few times, and she caught Makoto looking again whenever she thought Keiko wasn’t paying attention, but Makoto hadn’t  _ said _ anything. ‘I’m your girlfriend, babe. You can gawk. It’s fine,’ Keiko mused, then grinned at Sojiro.

“Isn’t Makoto just so beautiful?” She giddily wrapped her arms around her and kissed Makoto on the cheek, her face turning red.

“Keiko, not in public!” Makoto said, giggling.

Sojiro chuckled. “You kids. Is this your first date?”

“Is it that obvious?”

He shrugged. “You both look completely lost.”

“That’s just Makoto. I got all dressed up for her and all she does is stare at my ass,” Keiko laughed, not quite able to finish the sentence.

“I have done no such-”

“You’re doing it right now,” Keiko giggled again.

Makoto tightened her firsts and her voice sounded strained. “That’s because you put it in my head!”

“How’s the view?” Keiko teased.

Makoto gave a frustrated grunt, but Keiko grasped her hand and the smile returned to her face fairly quickly. 

“I can’t believe you guys picked here for your first date,” Sojiro said. “You’re here all the time.”

“We were actually just stopping by for coffee before we headed out,” Keiko replied as the two of them took a seat in front of Sojiro at the counter. “Makoto makes me drink vending machine coffee when we go anywhere. Can you believe that?”

“That’s completely unforgivable. Reminds me of the time Wak-” Then he made a cut-it-out motion towards the girls as the bell chimed. Keiko instinctively dropped Makoto’s hand. 

“Good morning!” He greeted the familiar silver-haired woman who’d walked in. 

“Sis!” Makoto eeped, turning towards the door. She dropped Keiko’s hand.

Sae looked at the two girls. “Oh. I didn’t expect to see either of you out this early.” 

Keiko shrugged. “If I didn’t wake up early, your sister would be blowing up my phone to make sure I’m still alive.”

Makoto shot daggers Keiko’s way. “Do I need to recount the last time I disappeared for even a few minutes?”

“Yes, Makoto. Why don’t you tell that story? I’m sure your  _ sister _ would love to hear it.” 

Makoto clammed up and Sae laughed, luckily not catching on to Keiko’s implication.

“Sakura-san, I was hoping you’d have a few minutes to talk today.”

Sojiro shrugged. “I’ve told you as much as I can.” He delivered a couple of to-go cups to Keiko and Makoto. “I know nothing about her research.”

Makoto frowned, and Keiko could tell her mood was souring. Sojiro was a kind old man who didn’t deserve this kind of questioning. If he said he knew nothing, he was telling the truth, Keiko believed. 

Keiko covertly grabbed Makoto’s hand and squeezed, letting go right after.

“Sis, I think you should back off.” Alarm bells went off in Keiko’s head to get them out of there, but Makoto wouldn’t budge from her seat. She turned her red eyes towards her sister in a glare.

“Makoto, you don’t even know what I’m asking him about.”

“You’re right, I don’t.” Keiko hadn’t expected Makoto to use this tone with her sister. “But I  _ do _ know that you’re making Sojiro uncomfortable, and if he knew anything, he’d tell you. He’s trustworthy.” 

Sae crossed her arms. “That’s obviously not true, or else he’d tell me what he’s hiding. Like why he has custody of Wakaba Isshiki’s daughter.”

“That’s none of your business,” Sojiro grumbled. “Somebody had to be there for the kid.”

Sojiro was getting mad and Makoto looked like she might try and fistfight her sister. Keiko had to get them away from LeBlanc.

Makoto tried to speak again but Keiko cut her off. “Makoto, we should go. I think maybe we don’t know what she’s getting into.” She left the fact that they’d find out later as part of an unspoken conversation. “Let’s go enjoy our Sunday off. We’ve earned it.”

“You’re right.” Makoto sighed. “Sis, I’m sorry I got in the way.”

Keiko was used to getting glared at by Makoto, but Sae’s gaze made Makoto wilt in a way she’d never seen. 

“Maybe someday you’ll be more than just a pain in the ass.”

Keiko tried her hand at a hard look back at Sae, but it came off as sorrowful instead of angry. “You don’t mean that.”

“Let’s just go, Keiko,” Makoto nudged her shoulder. 

“Wait.” Sae stopped their exit. “I won’t be home tonight.”

They grabbed their coffee and made their way towards the station. 

Their initial plan was a trip to the aquarium because Keiko wanted to laugh at all the fish in captivity as revenge for the fact that slight contact with them might kill her, but she made the executive decision that an aquarium trip wasn’t involved enough to distract Makoto from the thoroughly ruined vibe. 

Keiko decided damage control was the best way to handle the date moving forward. She wanted to avoid Kichijoji because every single time she’d gone there, she’d run into Akechi. Shinjuku, even during the daytime, was a no even though Lala-chan would probably be able to save the day. Shibuya ran the risk of running into literally anyone from school, or the risk of Keiko getting recognized. That was becoming a bigger problem ever since her last television appearance.

“What about Inokashira Park?” Keiko gripped Makoto’s hand as they exited the train. Makoto didn’t respond. “Come on, a walk through nature will be good for us.” 

Makoto hadn’t spoken since they left LeBlanc. She had a somber look on her face that Keiko couldn’t get to go away no matter how hard she tried. She was beginning to feel like a court jester with no chance of succeeding in pleasing the queen. 

They walked in silence. To call the date a disaster to this point was to undersell the damage Sae did by choosing to berate her sister at the worst possible time.

“Mako,” Keiko broke her away from the intrusive thoughts. “You have every right to be upset right now.”

Makoto didn’t answer but squeezed Keiko’s hand. They focused on the walking trail that cut through the park and followed the lake. Keiko tried to focus on anything else. She didn’t want to stew and convince herself she hated Sae. What happened was awful, Keiko could admit, but Sae looked so exhausted, and she sounded so desperate. She couldn’t help but pity her. The squirrels ran from tree to tree searching for what Keiko assumed was their next meal. She felt stupid trying to relate to the squirrels, but it was similar to how she felt chasing stories. She could plan a budget all she wanted, but something was bound to pop up to take her away from normal work. 

This Phantom Thieves business had turned Keiko into a madwoman chasing every lead she could, and now she was wandering a park holding hands with one of them. This was some sort of major violation of journalism ethics, Keiko assumed, but she couldn’t just take herself off the beat. She was basically becoming a celebrity because of them. 

“Do you regret all this?” Makoto broke Keiko away from her reflections.

“What do you mean?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. “Being with you? Absolutely not. This morning-”

“I don’t mean because of this morning,” Makoto sighed. “I mean, the Phantom Thieves things. Do you regret getting involved?” 

“That’s a good question.” Keiko stopped walking to gather her thoughts, then caught back up with Makoto, who hadn’t stopped. “I don’t regret it.”

“Me neither.” Makoto shook her head. “Just a few months ago, I wanted to be a cop.” 

Keiko giggled. “That fits you, though.”

“I don’t know.” They walked for a bit before Makoto spoke again. “I look at how little they did for Kamoshida’s victims, and how they didn’t even know about Madarame’s crimes. And Kaneshiro... “ Makoto trailed off.

“It took him backing the wrong woman against the wall for him to go down,” Keiko said, failing in her attempt to pull Makoto closer. “You should focus on the pride that gives you.” Makoto sighed. “Makoto.  _ You _ took him down. Do you know how badass that is?”

“I was only in those shoes because I was being an idiot.” She looked down at the dirt trail. 

“That’s true.” Keiko wouldn’t cede the point that Makoto should have never charged in like she did. “How many people have crossed Kaneshiro and survived? That number is probably zero, and if it’s not zero, we’ll never find out because those that did are still in fear for their fucking lives. Be proud of yourself.”

Makoto took a deep breath, then let it out.

“Not only did you cross him, you took that fucker down.” Keiko didn’t want to condone the behavior, but it  _ was _ pretty cool. “Be proud, be happy, and maybe learn something from Ren.”

“What do you mean?” Makoto raised her eyebrow at Keiko, who stopped their wandering to pull them under a shady tree. 

“If your sister thinks you’re a pain in the ass, embrace it.” Some of the light that had been missing returned to Makoto’s eyes. Or maybe Keiko was just seeing things. “She might be stressed out, but that gives her no reason to lash out at you and ruin a date we’ve both been looking forward to for weeks.”

“Are you giving me permission to retaliate?”

Keiko grinned. “You’d never stand up for yourself if I didn’t give you permission.”

Makoto rolled her eyes and for the first time since they left LeBlanc, smiled. “I hesitate to compliment you because your head is big enough already.”

Keiko mocked a frown. “You won’t even tell me I look nice.” 

“I was nervous, okay?” Keiko could tell Makoto was chewing the inside of her lip. “You look amazing, though.”

“Aw,” Keiko smiled brightly. “Thanks, babe.” 

Makoto rolled her eyes and the two laughed. They enjoyed the rest of their Sunday and an incredible first date.

===

_ Tuesday, July 5, After School _

Keiko had been having dreams of Makoto inviting her to the Student Council room after school, so when it finally happened, her mind immediately went  _ there. _ Sadly, and luckily, Makoto was waiting in the Council room with Fujioka, the first-year they saved from the wrath of Hikari Shimizu just a few weeks ago.

“Oh, Niijima-senpai,” Fujioka wasn’t quite sobbing, but she definitely wasn’t happy. “I don’t know what to do. She left me alone for a bit after, but then Yuuta-kun asked to borrow a pencil and I didn’t want to say no.”

“What did she do?” Keiko inserted herself in the conversation. Fujioka was a tiny person with a mousy voice and glasses. She couldn’t imagine bullying her.

“She-” Fujioka hiccuped. “She broke my glasses yesterday.”

“Because you let him borrow a pencil,” Makoto asked for confirmation and Fujioka nodded. 

“I know she told me to leave him alone, but I didn’t want to be rude.” 

“Does Yuuta know about what she did?”

Fujioka shook her head. “I don’t know. I’m not really friends with him.”

“Is Shimizu going after more than just you?”   
“She goes after any girl he talks to,” she folded her hands on the table and looked down at them. “But I’m the only one she tries to fight.” ‘Makes sense,’ Keiko thought. There aren’t many people in the school smaller than Fujioka.

“Alright,” Makoto said. “You stay here. I’m going to go solve this problem.”

“Makoto, what are you-”

“I want you to escort Kaori-kun home.” Makoto’s eyes said she was about to do more than just talk to Shimizu like she claimed. “I’m going to sit her down and explain why she needs to back off.”

“Niijima-senpai, thank you.” Fujioka smiled through sad eyes. “You’re the best.”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “Don’t tell her that. If her ego gets too big, she’ll realize she’s too good for me.”

Kaori took that as ‘too good to be my friend’ but Makoto scoffed, knowing the hidden meaning. 

“Keiko-chan, we’ll meet up after, right?” Makoto meant meet at her apartment. Keiko nodded, then escorted the first-year to the station and made sure she got home safely while Makoto gathered the Phantom Thieves. Shimizu wouldn’t be bothering anybody again.

===

_ Wednesday, July 6, After School _

“Niijima-senpai!” A squeaky voice kept Makoto and Keiko from leaving for Protein Lovers that afternoon. They stopped and greeted Fujioka, who seemed in much higher spirits than she was yesterday. “Shimizu-san apologized, and offered to pay for my new glasses.”

Makoto smiled. “Good! I’m glad things worked out.”

“Me too,” Kaori replied. “My mom will be so happy. It’s kind of weird, though.”

“What is?”

“I asked what you told her, and she said you didn’t talk to her at all,” Kaori said with a shrug. 

Keiko looked away, trying not to laugh, but Makoto was quicker on her feet than usual. “It was probably just the fear that I might talk to her that got to her. I can be pretty scary when I want to be.”

“It’s true, Kaori-chan.” Keiko giggled. “She’s absolutely terrifying when I slack on my studies.”

Fujioka’s eyes got wide. “That doesn’t sound like you, Senpai! Second year must be way tougher than I thought.”

They made idle chit chat a little longer before Fujioka walked away with a spring in her step. 

“Good job, Mako.” Keiko reached out and squeezed her hand quick enough that nobody would notice.

===

_ Saturday, July 9, Early Morning _

Keiko was trying to make the most of not being able to stay with Makoto the night prior. Sae was off work on time for once, strictly demanding Makoto be prepared for the upcoming end of term exams. Something gave her the idea that Makoto had been slacking.

She hadn’t, as far as Keiko knew. They did a lot of studying together, and the world had finally slowed down. Sae was even more gung-ho about capturing the Phantom Thieves now that they took down a career-criminal she never even had the chance to go after, which should have been more stressful. Instead, the Phantom Thieves opted to lay low, meaning Keiko and Makoto spent every moment together that they could. There were still the occasional trips to somewhere Makoto called Mementos, but they were limited to once or twice a week because Makoto put her foot down that school needed to come first. Ren agreed, to the chagrin of Ann and Ryuji. 

This meant Keiko had to sleep at home in her own bed, which only happened just often enough to prevent her parents from getting suspicious. She’d explained to her mother that her friend’s sister was busy at work and needed somebody to stay because being alone made her friend anxious. It wasn’t a lie, and Keiko’s mother was proud of her for being there for somebody. 

The nights Keiko had to stay home weren’t very restful, although the nights she stayed with Makoto often featured less sleep. Keiko made up for the poor sleep by promising herself she’d get food at LeBlanc in the morning. Even though this was one such morning, Keiko had an ulterior motive for seeing Sojiro that morning. Alibaba disappeared.

She hadn’t heard from the mysterious hacker in a week, despite her efforts. She didn’t even text to razz Keiko and Makoto for being gross and saying weird couple things, which was one of her favorite hobbies.

Sojiro had already placed Keiko’s plate in front of her when she spoke up. “Sojiro, I know you don’t like talking about your daughter, but I haven’t heard from her in a while.” He startled, and she kept talking. “I just need to know if she’s okay.”

He sighed. “I don’t know.” He looked sad, but he grumbled something about her being a stupid kid. “She’s not eating her food. I usually drop a plate in front of her door.”

“She won’t even leave her room?” 

Sojiro shook his head. “She was leaving her room. At least, she used to.”

“Did something happen?”

Sojiro shrugged. “I don’t know. She won’t talk to me. If she’s not talking to you, she’s not talking to anyone.”

“I owe it to her,” Keiko said. “Do you think I could try and meet her?”

“Kid, I don’t know.” Sojiro looked hesitant. “I can hear her shouting sometimes. Like her mom’s in the room. I don’t know-”

“How’d her mother die?”

“You could probably find it in an old newspaper if you looked.” Sojiro sighed. “I don’t really like talking about it. I’m sorry.”

“You have no reason to be sorry, Sojiro.” Keiko didn’t feel much like going to school now. Seeing Sojiro so down in the dumps was jarring from his normal behavior. “If you’ll let me, I’d like to meet Futaba. If you won’t, then I understand.”

===

_ Lunchtime _

Keiko decided she could drop off her leftover curry with Kawakami for lunch, but then Makoto and Kasumi decided to come with her because they missed their lunches with the ever-exhausted young teacher. 

“Thank you, Keiko.” Kawakami was grateful for the leftovers. She looked even more exhausted than usual, and her voice sounded raspy, a bit stuffy. “I just don’t have time to cook anymore.”

“Is something wrong, Kawakami-sensei?” Kasumi looked at her with great concern. Somebody not eating was her worst nightmare. 

Kawakami hadn’t known Kasumi well until she followed Keiko into her room one day, so the outpouring of empathy from a near stranger caught her off guard. “Oh. I’ll be okay. Thank you for worrying, Yoshizawa-kun. I think I’m coming down with a virus of some sort. I’m sure I’ll be okay in a couple days.” 

“You need to eat!” Kasumi looked horrified, and it took a little fortitude for Keiko and Makoto to keep a straight face. 

“I’ll be fine-”

“I will not hear of it.” Kasumi huffed, then stormed out of the room.

“Where is she-”

She was back seconds later with a second bento. “I always pack two just in case I get hungry before practice, but I ate plenty today.”

“I-” Kawakami stammered. “I don’t know what to say. Thank you, Yoshizawa-kun.” 

Kasumi bowed. “Anything for a friend.”

Keiko and Makoto shared a look with each other. Kasumi was something else.

===

_ Monday, July 11, Evening _

“So, we discovered why Kawakami was so exhausted all the time.” Makoto returned to LeBlanc after the Phantom Thieves’ Mementos trip to pick up Keiko. They walked hand in hand back to the train station. Sae wouldn’t be home that night.

“Huh? I could have told you that,” Keiko shrugged. “She’s been moonlighting as one of those fetish maids because she owed somebody money.”

“What? I just thought she was being extorted!”

Keiko paused. “Oh. Well. Please don’t tell anybody.”

“Wait,” Makoto gave Keiko a hard look. “Why do you know that? I know you’re friends, but she never told us.”

“Yeah, about that,” Keiko chuckled nervously and pulled at her collar. “Remember when I told you that story about my dad getting a finger up the bum?”

Makoto’s horrified face told the story better than Keiko could have.

“Yeah.” Keiko huffed. “The finger belonged to her.”

She didn’t expect to be pulled into a tight hug, but that’s what Makoto did. “You poor, poor thing.”

“Uh, not that I’m complaining, but if you don’t let go soon, we’re going to miss our train.”

“Right,” Makoto let go, and they took off, back towards Makoto’s apartment. 

The apartment was mostly silent that night as Makoto and Keiko had to prepare for final exams. Makoto broke the silence right before bedtime. “Remember that night when we snuck that whiskey?”

Keiko grinned. “Yeah. That’s the night I realized I had a crush on you.”

“Huh. I swore it started way earlier,” Makoto furrowed her brow as she started putting her books away.

“When do you think it started?”

Makoto shrugged. “I assumed it was the first time you saw me naked.”

“That’s a bit skin deep, don’t you think?” Keiko knew physical attraction was part of it, but there was a lot beyond her looks that she found adorable about Makoto.

Makoto shrugged. “I didn’t say that was the only reason. I just assumed you started seeing more there after that.”

“Oh.” Keiko took a second to think it through. 

“Anyway, there’s a new bottle in the cabinet.” Makoto’s voice sounded a bit more excited than Keiko anticipated.

If Sae found out, Keiko thought, they’d be cooked. “Sae didn’t say anything?”

“Nope. I mean, the bottle was open before we got to it, and we didn’t make that big of a dent in it.” The bottle was almost full when they’d started drinking it, and was a little over three quarters of the way full by the time they were done: Enough for two lightweights to get a buzz and not enough for Sae to know the difference. 

“Is the new one sealed?”

“It is not,” Makoto said, wearing a small smile.

“I guess we know how we’re celebrating the start of summer break, then,” Keiko grinned.

===

_ Saturday, July 16, After School _

“Do you think you could meet with Futaba?”

Keiko startled, looking away from her coffee and at Sojiro. She nodded. “I would like that if you’re okay with it.”

“I think she needs to see another person besides me.” Sojiro nodded to himself. “Futaba definitely needs to see somebody besides me.”

“Have you been able to talk to her lately?”

“She’s shouted ‘go away!’ a few times. Does that count?” Sojiro’s laugh even sounded sad.

Keiko shrugged. “That’s about as much as my parents ever get out of me.”

“Let me close up shop,” Sojiro said. “She should be awake right now.” 

He led Keiko out of the cafe and flipped the sign. He taped a sign to the door that said he’d be back soon, and they walked to his house.

Sojiro’s house was larger than Keiko realized a home in Yongen-Jaya could be. He almost had a front yard, a 10-foot stretch of green from his front gate to his front door. That was a luxury barely anyone in the city had. The front door opened to a hallway that stretched ahead and to their right. The home was either dark and depressing or kept dark and depressing at the behest of one of its residents. Keiko couldn’t quite tell the coloring, but they eventually reached a door that was basically covered in caution tape. 

“Man, she really doesn’t want to see anybody,” Keiko joked, but Sojiro didn’t find it funny. 

He sighed. “I’ll get back to my shop. I think this will be easier for her if I’m not here.”

Keiko nodded. “I can do this.”

Sojiro left.

“Futaba?” Keiko heard movement coming from the room, but she didn’t get a reply. “It’s uh, it’s Keiko. Or SendNews. Your friend, right?”

A groan came out of the room. Keiko’s phone buzzed.

**Alibaba:** Go away

Keiko frowned. “Futaba, Sojiro’s worried, and you haven’t been talking to me either.” 

**Alibaba:** I don’t deserve him. Or you.

“What? Futaba, that’s just not true.” Keiko tried to stop herself from pacing. If Futaba could hear the footsteps, she might think Keiko is walking away, and the worst thing Keiko could do right now is give the impression that she’s giving up. “When is the last time you’ve eaten?”

**Alibaba:** dunno

“What do you like?” Keiko felt terrible. She thought of Futaba as a close friend, but she really knew nothing about her.

**Alibaba:** dying. That would be nice

It wasn’t meant to be funny. It wasn’t a joke. But Keiko laughed anyway because it was the exact kind of edgy answer she’d give Makoto or Kawakami, or Ren, or anybody who asked how she was doing. “I’m sorry.”

**Alibaba:** no, it was kind of funny.

**Alibaba:** I’ll eat if you promise to go away

“Futaba, you can’t do this to yourself.” Keiko sighed. “Will you eat curry? I can bring you some.”

**Alibaba:** Yeah.

“And you have to promise. No more skipping meals.” Keiko chuckled to herself. “Besides, I still haven’t repaid you for all your help.”

“You could repay me in instant ramen.” Futaba’s voice was high pitched but raspy from not being used. She sounded tired.

“I’ll bring you some instant ramen, too,” Keiko said, ignoring the giddy feeling that came from finally hearing Futaba talk. “I’m leaving now, Futaba. I’ll be back soon.”

“Thank you.”

Keiko walked faster than necessary to the grocery store and bought a ton of instant ramen, which ultimately isn’t all that expensive, so it didn’t set her back much. Then she returned to LeBlanc and gave Sojiro the good news.

“Futaba said she’ll eat as long as I go away,” she told Sojiro excitedly. 

“Ha!” Sojiro chuckled. “I knew sending you to annoy her into submission would work.”

Keiko narrowed her eyes. “Fine, I guess you  _ don’t _ want my help.”

Sojiro rolled his eyes and waved her off. “I’m assuming she’ll eat curry?”

Keiko nodded, and Sojiro went to work preparing the meal and putting it in a styrofoam box. She was back out the door and headed to deliver the meal.

The home was again quiet and Futaba’s door was still locked. Keiko knocked softly, surprised to get a voice back, instead of a text message.

“Leave it by the door. I’ll get it when you leave.”

“I was kind of hoping to see what you look like,” Keiko said. “You know better than anyone that I’m too nosy for my own good.”

“Yeah.” Keiko was about to relent. Futaba’s voice sounded so melancholic that she couldn’t justify putting her through something so stressful. She hadn’t experienced agoraphobia, but Keiko had read about it. It could be a real bitch.

But the door opened, and before her stood a scrawny, orange-haired girl with thick black glasses.

“There. Are you happy?” Futaba said before she bent down to pick up the tray that Keiko had placed on the floor.

“I am. Thank you, Futaba.”

She sighed. “No. Thank you. I’ll try to stop disappearing.” Keiko looked over her shoulder at the room. It was lit up in the blue from a computer screen and an absolute pig sty. She didn’t comment. 

“I can leave you alone now,” Keiko said, and Futaba went back into her room, closing and locking the door. 

===

_ Evening _

Keiko was torn between being thrilled that she finally got to meet Futaba and sad about how awfully things seemed to be going for her. Makoto immediately picked up on there being something wrong, and asked, but Keiko pulled out her phone instead of answering. She demonstrated that they should probably both turn their phones off while she answered the question. 

She started speaking after she was sure there would be no surveilling their conversation.

“I met Sojiro’s daughter today.” 

Makoto was at the counter, mixing two drinks using the whiskey they both hoped and prayed they wouldn’t get caught stealing. She took the extra time to put it back in the cabinet after making the drink. If it wasn’t out and Sae came home, they could claim they were just drinking cola and hopefully act like they weren’t intoxicated. She made her way back to the couch, handing Keiko her drink before sitting down next to her. 

“Alibaba?”

Keiko nodded and comfortably leaned her head on Makoto’s shoulder. “Her real name is Futaba.”

“What’s she like?” Makoto put her free arm around Keiko and took a drink with the other. 

“She seems really sad.” Keiko moved her head to take a drink but moved it back after swallowing. She needed the contact to talk about Futaba, Keiko thought. “I got her to eat, though.”

“That’s good. Was Boss having trouble with that? He’s such a good cook,” Makoto said. “I can’t imagine not eating if he’s making the food.”

“He can’t get her to leave her room. Or eat. Or talk. Nothing.” Keiko shrugged. “Something isn’t right.”

“Do you think Boss is hurting her?”

Keiko moved her head and gave Makoto a hard glare. “Don’t.” 

“Okay.” Makoto looked down. “It’s just a thought. We don’t know why she’s that way.”

“Your sister asked him why he adopted Wakaba Isshiki’s daughter.”

“Who’s Wakaba Isshiki?”

Keiko shrugged. “I don’t know. But if he adopted her daughter, she’s either on the run or dead.”

Makoto took a sip. “Do you think Futaba’s depression is related to being abandoned?”

“I think it’s trauma.” Keiko finished her drink far more quickly than she had the last time. Neither of them spoke for a while. “Do you think Sae would sit down and talk to me? I’m worried about Futaba.”

“She definitely wouldn’t,” Makoto frowned. “Sae takes her investigations very seriously. She’s more likely to talk about dad than she is work, and that’s saying something.

Keiko frowned again, but Makoto didn’t see it. “I’m going to ask anyway.”

“Remember all that fuss you made about me charging into Kaneshiro’s stronghold and nearly getting killed?”

“Yeah,” Keiko raised an eyebrow. “I was right, and you can’t convince me otherwise.”

Makoto chuckled. “I’m not saying you weren’t right. I’m saying this is about as dangerous as that was.”

Keiko snuck a kiss on the cheek and grinned. “Consider this payback, then.”

“I guess I’ll have to enjoy our last night together, then.” Makoto returned her grin, and they might’ve made out for longer than appropriate or necessary. 

===

_ Sunday, July 17, Afternoon _

It took Keiko all day to find the nerve to call Sae. Makoto convinced her that trying to get the information over the phone would at least save her from the stony death glare that normally came with Sae’s anger. 

Sae picked up on the first ring. “This is Niijima.”

“Hi, Sae-san.” Keiko hoped her deep breath wasn’t audible through the phone.

“Hello, Keiko-chan. Is Makoto behaving?” 

Keiko instinctively ran her hand over some bruises on her neck that her turtleneck thankfully covered up. ‘No, she’s not.’ She didn’t say that out loud. “As well as she ever does,” Keiko chuckled. “I don’t think I’ve ever felt this good coming out of exams.”

“Hopefully she feels the same way,” Sae said. “Do you need something?”

“I do,” Keiko said. “I don’t mean to bring up difficult feelings, because I know that last talk with Sojiro didn’t go well.”

“It could have gone better,” Sae admitted. “If you’re calling to defend him, there’s no need. I have no doubts that Sojiro Sakura is an upstanding citizen. My concern lies with his treatment of his daughter.”

“And his ties to Wakaba Isshiki,” Keiko pointed out.

“Yeah,” Sae said, seemingly caught off guard. “That’s part of it.”

“I’d argue that’s the whole story,” Keiko said with a sigh. “Can you tell me what happened to Wakaba?” Keiko could hear Sae hesitating. “Futaba is one of my closest friends. She completely cut me off about a month ago,” Keiko said, realizing that Futaba stopped talking the same day Sae asked about her. “I thought it was something I said or did, but I was able to see her in person. She’s not doing well.”

“Is Sojiro hurting her?”

“No. Funny. That was your sister’s first guess, too.” Keiko almost made a joke about daddy-issues, but she stopped herself. “She’s agoraphobic. She’s afraid to leave her room.”

“Has she always been that way?”

“We’ve been friends for over a year. She lived a block away from me the entire time, and we just met in-person yesterday,” Keiko said. “She’s been that way ever since I’ve known her.”

There was an audible sigh on the other line. “Her mother killed herself two years ago. Flung herself into oncoming traffic right in front of Futaba.”

“Oh, no,” Keiko whispered as her stomach left her torso and landed somewhere near her feet. “Futaba…”

“It’s extremely sad,” Sae said. “Wakaba was a brilliant woman.”

“Sojiro said she was a researcher with the government,” Keiko said. “But that’s all he’d tell me. I don’t think he knows anything more than that. He’s not the type to ask questions.”

“She was one of their best,” Sae said. “Keiko, I need you to make sure you don’t speak of this to anyone.”

“I understand.”

“No, you don’t.” Sae huffed. “And I’m glad you don’t. I have to go.”

“Bye.” Keiko hung up her phone and had a few messages.

**Alibaba:** she didn’t commit suicide

**Alibaba:** I killed her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's nice that we're getting away from me having to explain a bunch of stupid terms at the beginning of a chapter, but here are a few things I'd like to expand on anyway, because I have an overexplaining problem.
> 
> "You can't out-train a bad diet." This is possibly the most important thing for anyone trying to get in shape to understand. I've been trying to out-train a bad diet for years, and now I'm just a fat guy with muscles. It's not my fault I eat too much pizza. (It's definitely my fault I eat too much pizza.)
> 
> Kawakami does not have COVID-19. I feel the need to confirm that in case anyone gets concerned like my beta did. (Vorphik, who has a great fic of his own you should read.)
> 
> This chapter has an absurd amount of snuggling, cuddling, and handholding, which is hilarious to me because basically everything I'd ever written before starting to write fanfic was shitty attempts at thrillers and mysteries. This is much more fun and probably born of the fact that I haven't had meaningful interaction with another human since the pandemic started. Oof.
> 
> Futaba makes me sad. I'll be happy when this arc is over and I can go back to writing a nerdy pervert who doesn't understand why people want privacy. 
> 
> Also, this is a very Ren-less chapter. I wonder what he's up to. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
> 
> This chapter crosses 75k words. Dear god. For those keeping count, I have published 345k worth of fanfic since August, which means counting what I haven't yet published, I'm at over 400k words. I can't decide whether to cry or celebrate.


	12. Alibaba

_ Monday, July 18, Early Morning _

“Good morning, kid,” Sojiro greeted, the bell chiming as Keiko walked through the door. He was open earlier than usual.

“G‘mornin’.” Keiko greeted with a yawn. She didn’t sleep much. She was only at LeBlanc this early because she wanted to rip off the bandaid of telling him about her conversation with Sae.

“You alive in there?” ‘Nope,’ Keiko thought, but she decided against giving Sojiro more to worry about.

“I’m fine,” Keiko sighed, trying to annunciate her words. “Just a case of the Mondays.”

Sojiro rolled his eyes. “I’m not buying that bullshit for a second.”

“Why not?” Keiko shrugged. “It’s partially true.”

“A case of the Mondays? When have you  _ ever _ spoken like that?” He raised an eyebrow and laughed when Keiko didn’t have a good reply. “What’s wrong?”

“I know your life is none of my business,” Keiko said. “So I apologize for stepping in.”

Sojiro’s eyes narrowed. “What did you do?”

“I talked to Sae Niijima yesterday.” She fished her phone out of her pocket. “I was trying to figure out what happened to Futaba, maybe come up with a way to help.”

Sojiro nodded and didn’t tell her to stop.

“I thought if I knew the background, I’d be able to come up with an approach, or there’d be some kind of cure.” Keiko knew better than to think there would be a cure for depression. “And I wanted to know why Sae was so interested in Futaba’s mother.” She looked at Sojiro, expecting a response but not getting one. “I asked Sae what happened to Wakaba. She told me she jumped in front of a moving car in front of Futaba.”

“That is what happened.”

“She called it a suicide, and said it was extremely sad.” Keiko felt herself starting to choke up. “I know Sae is a pain in your ass, but she sounded genuinely remorseful. I just want you to know that. She-” Keiko sighed. “Maybe I shouldn’t go into detail. Sae is just so tired all the time.”

“She stops in more often than I’m comfortable with,” Sojiro grumbled. “I believe it. My just desserts for having the best coffee in the city.”

Keiko would have rolled her eyes if her spirits were higher. “Sae warned me not to get involved with whatever all this is.”

“She’s right. You shouldn’t get involved.” 

“But I have to, Sojiro,” Keiko pleaded. “It’s not just a story. Futaba is genuinely one of the most important people in my life.” She pulled up her messages from Alibaba the previous night. “That’s why I’m showing you this. Something isn’t right here.”

Sojiro looked at the screen and his face fell. “Futaba…”

“I don’t believe she killed her mother.”

“She didn’t,” Sojiro snapped, and choked. He didn’t speak for a bit. “Those men in black tried to make sure she thought she did, though.”

“What?” Men in black sounded like some batshit conspiracy to Keiko.

“Wakaba’s research was of great interest to the government’s intelligence agencies,” Sojiro said. “I don’t know what it is, exactly, but it was called cognitive psience. She thought she could use it to help people through behavioral and mental issues painlessly by altering their cognition.”

“That’s impossible,” Keiko gasped. ‘Change of heart…’

“I thought it was bullshit until they killed her.” Sojiro’s voice broke. Keiko didn’t think it was possible for him to cry. “I-” He took a deep breath. “Somebody had a vested interest in making sure her research didn’t get out.”

“I-” The puzzle pieces started to fall in place for Keiko. She just couldn’t see the whole picture, yet. “You mentioned the men in black. What did they do?”

Sojiro rubbed the back of his head. “They were everywhere for a few days. I stuck around Wakaba’s apartment to help Futaba pack for her uncle’s house. They-” he sighed. “They gave Futaba her mother’s suicide note. They made her read it out loud.”

“They fucking what-”

“Kid, you don’t know the half of it. If I were a younger man, there’d have been a dozen dead federal agents, and I’d be on death row. The note was full of nonsense about how the suicide was all Futaba’s fault.” Sojiro paused, trying to stem a sob. “They wanted her to think the whole thing was her fault.”

Keiko didn’t have words to describe the heartbreak. She looked down in her empty cup, and at the empty plate in front of her. Sojiro had said before that Wakaba helped him come up with the recipe for the curry. Her delicious breakfast now sat like lead. “There’s no such thing as justice, is there?”

Sojiro shook his head. “You’re learning this too young. But no, there’s not. Anyone claiming to be in favor of justice is misusing the word. It’s why I hole myself up in this little corner of the city.”

“When Sae started coming around, did you start getting worried you’d get caught up in everything?”

He nodded. “Wakaba was my best friend, but I never knew anything about her work. I think that’s what she liked most about me. If I asked and she didn’t answer, I would let it go.”

“I’m sure you had some other charms that drew her in,” Keiko tried to joke, but she couldn’t quite hold a smile. 

Sojiro scoffed. “I wish, kid. She was impervious to it.”

They sat in silence for some time. Ren would be awake soon. 

“Hey, Sojiro?” Keiko couldn’t shake the cobwebs out from their previous conversation.

“What’s up?” He raised an eyebrow, maybe expecting another hard question.

“Can I give you a hug? I kind of feel like we both need a hug.” He nodded, and Keiko was right. They both felt much better after. “I don’t know what I can do, Sojiro,” Keiko said quietly. She whispered to herself, trying to commit it to memory. “Cognitive psience.” She didn’t dare write it down.

‘This is a hell of a way to start my summer break,’ Keiko thought. She went to put her phone away but it buzzed as it hit her pocket. She pulled it back out.

**Makoto:** Hey, I know this is last second, but do you want to go to the fireworks with us tonight? 

**Keiko:** Idk does that mean I have to be seen in public with you

**Makoto:** Uh, yes? 

**Keiko:** Great, I’ll be sure to be extra embarrassing

‘Things aren’t  _ that _ bad, I guess,’ Keiko thought, putting her phone away. She returned home, because today is Monday, which means nap time, whether she’s in school or not.

===

_ After School _

"To the Phantom Thieves causing an uproar in Japan: Do not speak of your false justice. We do not need the spread of such falsehood. We are the true executors of justice. However, we are magnanimous. We will give you an opportunity to repent your ways. If you agree to a change of heart, we will accept you as our own. If you reject our offer, the hammer of justice will find you. We are Medjed. We are unseen. We will eliminate evil."

‘Okay,’ Keiko thought. ‘There’s not a single worse segment to be on TV on a day when Sae is home from work early.’

“Why do you two look so upset?”

Keiko covered for both of them immediately. She let out a big sigh, hopefully not too exaggerated. “It’s summer break, is all,” Keiko said. “Tonight is kind of special to us- um, and our friends. A celebration of the end of the semester, you know?”

“I understand. You guys have worked really hard this year,” Sae smiled at Makoto. Keiko saw pride coming through. 

“So, more Phantom Thieves news kind of taints the night.” Keiko bit her nails. “It’s my story. I broke it the first time, and I’ve followed it all the way through. Now I’m supposed to focus on helping my-” she nearly called Makoto her girlfriend- “friend put on a yukata? Tonight’s supposed to be fun.”

Sae chuckled. “Welcome to adulthood. Sometimes fun comes at a cost.” She shrugged. “If it makes you feel any better, Akechi-san will be too busy chasing down leads on Medjed and the Phantom Thieves that he might actually leave you alone for once.”

“Uh, that actually does make me feel a lot better,” Keiko said, being completely honest. 

Makoto called from the other room, letting Keiko know she needed help fixing her yukata.

When they were ready, they left for the station, where Ryuji was bragging to Ren and Yusuke about all the tail he was gonna pull that night.

Makoto looked disgusted at his words, but Keiko thought they were funny. 

“Why don’t you try that act out on Ann?”

Ryuji startled, not seeing Keiko and Makoto walk up. He didn’t say anything, instead opting to drool over-

“Don’t look at me like that!” Keiko grabbed Ryuji’s ear and pulled.

“Ow! Jesus!” She finally let go and he rubbed his ear. “I’m sorry. I just didn’t know you could look pretty.”

“Fucking asshole.” She huffed. Makoto chuckled and tried to cover her mouth when Keiko noticed. “Got somethin’ to say?” 

She couldn’t cover her laughter. Neither could Ren. “Only you would threaten a guy for calling you pretty.”

“He-” Keiko couldn’t think of a good reason for threatening Ryuji. “You’re the worst.”

“You look very pretty, Keiko,” Ren said. “Especially when you’re putting Ryuji in his place.”

“Oh, god,” Ann walked up in a yukata of her own, and Ryuji nearly made the mistake of drooling a second time. Ann rolled her eyes. “Boys,” she huffed.

“Ear comes off this time, monkey boy,” Keiko said with a threatening gesture. “You look great, Ann.” ‘Did Ann just blush?’

“Thanks, Keiko.” Ann looked over to Makoto. “You both look amazing. Why didn’t you invite me to come help get ready?”

“Sae got home from work early, and-”

“Well, next time we have a reason to get dressed, you two can come to my place,” Ann interrupted Makoto before she could overexplain and ruin the vibe.

Ren chuckled. “Am I invited?”

“You  _ would _ make a pretty girl…” Ann looked like she was actually putting serious thought into it. “Only if you wear a dress.”

Ryuji glared at Ren. “Dude, you can’t seriously go for tha-”

“Okay, but I get to wear makeup, too.” Ren grinned.

Ryuji threw his arms up in protest. “Bro! What the-” 

“And I shall paint this magnificent scene,” Yusuke said, framing the scene with his hands. 

Keiko swore Morgana scoffed and meowed. ‘How in the fuck is a meow this condescending?’ She looked at Makoto. 

“Morgana agrees with Ryuji,” Makoto shrugged. “Personally, I think Ren would make a prettier girl than me.”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “Fish harder, babe.” Makoto’s eyes went wide. Ren laughed while Ann glared at him. 

“What are you laughing at?” Ann asked in an accusatory tone.

“Oh,” Ren looked at Makoto guiltily. “Uh, I’m not really at liberty to explain why.”

Keiko grabbed Makoto’s hand. “We’re together.”

“Ha! Ryuji’s on quite the losing streak.” Ann flicked his sore ear. “He told me last week that he was gonna-”

“I didn’t say a thing! You’re lying!”

“Ryuji, were you saying inappropriate things about us?” Keiko was just thrilled she wasn’t on the receiving end of Makoto’s tone. It gave her the bad kind of goosebumps. 

“I, uh, no-” Ryuji stammered. “That’s not how I-”

“Do I need to pull up the recording?”

“You recorded it?!”

“Well, our hands are tied,” Keiko said mercifully. “If he didn’t know about the recording, you legally can’t use it.”

“That’s not even remotely true for this situation-” Makoto shut up when Keiko gave her a stern look. “I mean, I suppose I can let it go this one time.”

“Keiko, thank you,” Ryuji said. “So, uh, you guys hear about Medjed?”

“There goes all Ann’s hard work in keeping the mood light,” Keiko said, rolling her eyes. 

Ren nodded. “We’ll worry about it tomorrow. Let’s have fun tonight.”

===

A torrential downpour ruined Keiko’s plans for a romantic kiss under the fireworks, but that was fine because she and Makoto were both  _ soaked.  _ It made for a hell of a view until Ryuji’s lack of subtlety ruined the fun. At least he paid for it when Ann smacked him upside the head.

Sae left again before Keiko could get Makoto back home, but she wasn’t working. There was a note on the table that she would be out late. Keiko had a text asking if she could stay over again. She replied that she had planned to anyway, so it wouldn’t be an issue. She’d already dropped off a bag with her school clothes before the fireworks. 

It was warm outside despite the rain, but they were cold and shivering once they made it indoors. A good problem, Keiko thought. How many people could complain about being cold in Tokyo in July? 

“Who goes first?” Makoto gestured towards the bathroom.

Keiko raised an eyebrow, and she was sure the look she gave was one that would have gotten Ryuji slapped earlier. “We could go together”

“Smooth.” Makoto grinned. “But no. You go first.”

Keiko stood up from her spot on the sofa. “You’re no fun.” It was a nice, albeit lonely, shower. She chose to look at the bright side: Taking the shower first meant commandeering the bed before Makoto got a chance to. 

Makoto must have heard her evil laugh because she shouted from the bathroom. 

“You are  _ not _ stealing my bed!”

“Rats.” She was out of the shower within a few minutes. Keiko was just thankful she didn’t get kicked to the couch. 

They laid in silence for a while, and there wasn’t much interaction beyond a few brief kisses and little nibbles. This gave Keiko’s mind time to wander.

Normally, Keiko’s mind wandered towards things that neither of them was quite ready for. Tonight, it wandered to Futaba and Wakaba. Cognitive psience. And Sae’s stern warning. 

Maybe Makoto would know what to do.

“I found out what happened to Futaba’s mother.” Keiko felt Makoto’s arms squeeze her tighter. Makoto nuzzled her face into Keiko’s hair. 

“What happened?” She must’ve been close to sleep already. Her voice had a rasp evident of sleep.

“I didn’t mean to wake you,” Keiko frowned. “Just go to sleep, Makoto. We can talk in the morning.”

“Nuh-uh.” Keiko had to stifle a laugh. Makoto’s voice sounded small. “If you don’t tell me, you won’t sleep, and then I have to deal with you being surly all day.”

“When am I not surly?”

“Surlier,” Makoto grunted. “Happy?”

“Far from it.”

Makoto’s grip around her loosened, and Keiko turned to face her girlfriend. They shared a brief kiss. “Now, tell me what happened.”

“Futaba thinks she killed her mom.”

“What?” The sleep shook away from Makoto’s voice.

“Her mom committed suicide in front of her.” Keiko was getting tired of crying. She swallowed a lump in her throat. “These men in black showed up after. They made Futaba read her mother’s suicide note out loud.”

“Keiko.” Makoto’s voice came through breathless. “That’s terrible.”

“They did it so many times. It was like-” Keiko drew this conclusion without Sojiro’s help. “It was like they wanted Futaba to believe she did it. Like somebody was afraid of getting blamed.”

Makoto wrapped her arms around Keiko again.

“Sojiro thinks somebody killed Wakaba. Not Futaba.”

No response from Makoto.

“Have you ever heard of cognitive psience?” Makoto shook her head. “Wakaba was researching it. Sojiro said she found a method that would solve behavioral issues and mental problems by altering a subject’s cognition. I thought it sounded familiar.”

“The change of heart.” Makoto’s voice was louder than Keiko was comfortable with. “Futaba’s mother was talking about changing hearts.”

“I think she was,” Keiko said.

Makoto’s red eyes practically glowed. She was awake again. “What does this-” she stopped talking.

Keiko took that as her turn to talk. “I don’t know what it means.”

“We aren’t alone,” Makoto said. “Somebody else is using the metaverse.”

“What?”

“The place we go to change hearts. Morgana told us that there’s a chance we could accidentally shut somebody down if we don’t steal the heart correctly.” Most of this flew over Keiko’s head. “I had a feeling the mental shutdowns related to the metaverse, but this is too much.” 

“I’m not quite sure I understand.”

“If you kill a person’s shadow, their mind shuts down. They’re alive but-”

“Oh my god.” Keiko sat up. Makoto soon followed. “They’re alive, but their mind isn’t. They’re practically brain dead. This is what your sister meant when she told me to stay away.”

“Sae knows?”

“I don’t know for sure,” Keiko confessed. “I suspect she plays a role in this.”

“Sis…”

“Makoto, your sister is not a bad person.” Keiko trusted her gut on this. “I think her hands are tied. She thinks she’s doing what’s right.”

“It’s up to us to show her it’s not.” Makoto put her hand on Keiko’s thigh. “I’m going to talk to Ren about this tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay. I’m going to reach out to Ohya. She deserves an explanation, at least for Kayo’s sake.” Keiko sighed. “I’m sorry I woke you.”

“Don’t be,” Makoto said. “As long as you’re here, I’ll sleep like a baby.”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “That makes one of us.  _ Somebody _ snores all through the night.”

===

_ Tuesday, July 19, After School _

The last week of school meant an odd amount of free time for Keiko. She already printed her last issue before the summer, a retrospective full of summaries and reactions to the most important stories of the last semester.

She tried to avoid having the issue be all about the Phantom Thieves, but a student snapped a photo of Kamoshida finding the calling card that first morning. It was hard to pass up having that as the lead art. That meant needing an explanation why I was the lead art, then talking to some of his victims, then reaching out to Katsuo Suzuki’s and Kana Hasegawa’s families, and then… Keiko didn’t sleep much last week.

Makoto was off with Ren trying to explain what they thought they discovered the night before. It left Keiko with the familiar lonely feeling she had whenever Makoto had more important things to do than hang out.

Keiko had already made the decision to go bug Sojiro for a couple hours when Kasumi tapped her on the shoulder. “Senpai, are you busy?” Keiko assumed Kasumi hadn’t been doing well lately from her voice. She sounded and looked tired. 

Keiko shrugged. She wasn’t about to say no when Kasumi looked like she needed something. It’s not like she had anything better to do, anyway. “No, I’m not. I was thinking of grabbing coffee. Want to come with?”

“Are you going to LeBlanc? I’m hungry,” Kasumi said, then faltered when Keiko laughed.

“You’re always hungry, Sumi-chan. I’d be concerned if you weren’t hungry.”

The talk of food lifted Kasumi’s spirits a little, and they left for LeBlanc. 

The bell chimed and Sojiro looked up from his crossword puzzle at the two girls. 

“Some day, I’m going to get actual paying customers,” Sojiro grumbled. 

“I offer to pay every time I come in,” Keiko said. “Your old ass won’t let me pay.”

“I get paid in abuse,” Sojiro said with a chuckle. He walked to the back to start on their food while Kasumi and Keiko took seats in a booth, albeit not without Keiko reaching for Sojiro’s crossword first. She thought it would be funny if she could finish it first.

“Wait-” she looked at the paper. “This is my paper!” 

“What?” Sojiro shouted from the kitchen. He walked out carrying two plates.

“How’d you get a copy of my paper?”

Sojiro set the plates down and fought a grin. “Oh, I have Ren grab me a copy every Monday.”

“Thanks, Sojiro,” Keiko tried not to sound too grateful. He’d get a big head. “It means a lot to me.”

“Don’t sweat it, kid. I read your paper for free, I feed you for free. It’s a fair trade.” He walked back to the counter, turning his concentration to the crossword puzzle.

Kasumi was already stuffing her face by the time he walked away. “This deal works great for me!”

Keiko deadpanned. “He wasn’t serious about it being a trade, Sumi-chan.”

She looked up from her food, which was nearly gone. “Oh.” She took another bite. “This still works great for me.”

Keiko ate her curry silently, ignoring Kasumi’s stares, as she finished much sooner.

“Is something going on?”

“Huh?” Kasumi startled. “What do you mean?”

Keiko shrugged. “You looked like you were really upset about something earlier.”

“Oh.” Kasumi checked her plate to make sure she didn’t miss a spot. “You were supposed to forget about that.”

“Was I really, though?” Keiko reassured her. “You can talk to me. Not everything gets put in the paper.”

“Huh? Oh, I wasn’t worried about that.” Kasumi sighed. “I’ve just been stuck in a rut lately. I didn’t do very well at my last competition.”

Keiko didn’t expect to hear that. Kasumi was head and shoulders above both her and Makoto whenever they trained. “That’s surprising. You work so hard.”

“That’s what I thought. I haven’t missed training, I dedicate myself, I eat right.” She sighed. “I don’t really know what more I can do. That’s not the worst part, though.”

“Ah,” Keiko said. “I guess I suspected that.”

Kasumi nodded. “The school might strip me of my status as an honors student if I don’t medal in my next competition.”

“Okay, what the fuck is wrong with this school?” Keiko responded without realizing how loud she was being. 

“Language!” Sojiro shouted from the back. 

“Sorry!” She cringed, then directed herself back towards Kasumi. “That’s bullshit, though. Are they that worried about their image that they’d ruin your life like that?”

Kasumi nodded, and met Keiko’s eyes sadly. She looked defeated.

“I won’t pretend I know anything about gymnastics. I don’t even know anything about self defense, just what Makoto told me to do. But I don’t think you should give up.” It was the most generic advice ever. Keiko felt ashamed. “This is stupid. But hey, if I can run a newspaper on $80, a pack of baseball cards, and a stick of chewing gum, you can medal in the next competition.”

“I don’t think those two things really equ-”

“Yeah, Kasumi, I don’t think they’re good comparisons either.” Keiko shrugged. “We should get to the root of this, though. When did your slump start?”

“Um,” Kasumi looked at her nervously. “A little before I transferred to Shujin, when my sister-”

“Right,” Keiko said. “I’m not going to make you talk about it if you aren’t comfortable.”

“It’s not that I can’t talk about it,” Kasumi said. “It just hurts to talk about.”

“Maybe it’s like ripping off a bandage. It hurts at first, but you’ll feel better after.”

“Maybe,” Kasumi smiled. “I think it’s also got to do with just not having anyone to talk about it with. I know you or Ren-Senpai would listen, but I don’t want to be a distraction.”

Keiko laughed. “Today’s your lucky day, then. I don’t have another paper to put out until September. Distract away.”

“I don’t really get a chance to talk about-” ‘why is everything so muffled?’ “much. I think the reason Shujin wanted me so badly is because they thought they were getting her.” The muffled noise returned immediately after. Keiko thought she remembered a thud before the world went dark.

===

Keiko’s left hand was warm. It felt nice. The other was cold. That didn’t feel all that great.

“Dr. Takemi, she’s waking up.” Makoto was here, at least.

“Oh.” She had a nice voice. Keiko had heard it somewhere before. She couldn’t remember where. “I honestly thought she was gonna die.”

Keiko tried to sit up too quickly, apparently. The headrush from sitting up caused her to fall back down onto the exam table. It was just soft enough to not be uncomfortable, but hard enough that Keiko didn’t want to lay down anymore.

“Not too fast,” the doctor said. It was a woman in a white lab coat with a green dress underneath. ‘Dr. Takemi,’ Keiko thought. ‘I don’t know her that well.’ “You passed out.”

Keiko felt she was speaking with a mouth full of peanut butter. Something that might’ve been words came out.

“Uh,” Makoto laughed. “She’s always like this when she wakes up.”

“Oh, fuck you.” Keiko’s first words were directed at Makoto.

Makoto rolled her eyes. “She’s awake now. Should I leave the room?”

“Eh,” Dr. Takemi shrugged. Keiko was sitting up now. “Not sure there’s anything you wouldn’t be allowed to know.”

“Shouldn’t you call her parents?”

“You strike me as the responsible type,” the doctor said. “And her parents are fucking weirdos.”

“That’s funny,” Keiko giggled. Her head felt off. “They try to get you to swing with ‘em, too?”

Dr. Takemi stared at the girl. “She hit her head harder than I thought.”

“Nope,” Makoto said. “This is how she copes.”

“So, I suppose I shouldn’t answer that question honestly, then.” Dr. Takemi groaned. “I swear, you wear a choker  _ once _ and everyone decides you’re into kinky shit.”

“Maybe I should wear a choker. Would you like that, Mako?”

Makoto blinked hard as her cheeks turned red. 

“Oh, you guys are together,” Dr. Takemi chuckled. “Now I’m not even breaking the law. Cool.”

Nobody said anything for a bit, but Keiko broke the silence when she realized how boring watching Dr. Takemi do paperwork was.

“What happened?”

“You passed out, and your little red-headed friend brought you,” Takemi stopped to think. Her mouth moved but words didn’t come out. “Right, that was her name. Anyway, she had to leave a bit ago. She was quite broken up.”

“Why?”

“Things didn’t look great when you first got here. We ran a CT and it was like your brain completely shut down.”

“Whoa.” Keiko had to think for a minute. Why did that sound familiar? “Like, one of those mental shut-somethings.” Why was everything so foggy?

“That’s what I thought at first,” Takemi confirmed. “But you’re here having a coherent conversation with me.”

“Can’t suffer a mental shutdown if you’re already brain-dead in the first place,” Keiko said with mock pride.

Makoto jabbed her in the ribs. “Stop it.”

“Fine…” Keiko rubbed at her now sore ribs. Makoto had bony fingers. “Hey Mako, remember that time I made the joke about your fingers and-”

“Can we not talk about that?” Makoto shook her head. “I’m so sorry, Doctor.”

“Please,” Takemi spoke sarcastically. “I’m just glad I’m not signing a death certificate. That’s a lot of paperwork.”

“Damn, doc,” Keiko tried standing up and failed. “Glad I pulled through. Wouldn’t want you to have to do more paperwork.” 

She laughed at Keiko’s sincere tone.

“Makoto, was it? I need you to stay with her tonight.” 

Makoto nodded. “I can get her to my apartment.”

“I’d actually prefer you not take her on the trains,” Takemi said. “I don’t know what happened, but I think keeping her in Yongen-Jaya for the night is safest. I can help you get her to her mom and dad’s.”

Makoto took a deep breath. 

“Cool! Mako, you get to meet my mom!” Keiko’s head was still quite a bit foggy. She probably wouldn’t have been too thrilled at the prospect otherwise. “Hopefully they aren’t fucking my teacher again.”

“Good god, Keiko,” Makoto said, looking up at the ceiling, or maybe to the sky, to a god that was probably trying to get her killed.

The walk to Keiko’s house had Takemi and Makoto somewhere between a hysterical laughing fit and an existential crisis. The closer they got to the Miyahara house, the stranger Keiko’s behavior became.

She pointed to the rarely-used office building across from her house.

“I ever tell you about the time my soul left my body?”

“What?” Makoto had decided humoring Keiko was the best way to deal with her.

“Yeah. Some guy in a black mask was shouting angry things at me. Dunno what he meant.” Keiko gave an exaggerated shrug. “Somethin’ about justice or somethin’.” She shook her head. “Keep pretendin’ you got justice. Something like that. Fucking Akechi.”

Takemi gave Makoto a confused glance. 

“Fuck.” Keiko huffed. “Not the point. Lost my name once. Then got real confused about what a bed was. I-D-K.” She actually said I-D-K out loud, which bothered Makoto greatly. “Then buddy-dude-jack across the street turned the light on ‘n I remembered everything.”

Makoto and Tae again shared a confused glance, neither responding. After a bit, Takemi left, Makoto thanking her for her help.

“Dr. Takemi’s hot.” Keiko definitely spoke loud enough for the doctor to hear her.

Makoto cringed. “I’m your girlfriend.”

“Yeah, so you know I like girls.” Kieko chirped.

“I’d prefer you not tell me about other women,” Keiko frowned at Makoto’s grumbling.

“Nah, just saying you should try dressin’ like that some time.” Keiko thought her own laugh felt a bit off. 

Makoto must’ve been hitting the end of her rope, because she let out the sigh to end all sighs. “Just letting you know, in case you care, I  _ am _ about to meet your parents.”

“Dude! Sick!” Keiko barrelled through the front door too quickly, falling over when she walked in.

“Keiko, what the fu-” Makoto stopped herself. “Oh.” She looked at the thin, tired-looking middle-aged woman in front of her. A little taller than Keiko with the same deep brown eyes, pretty, but definitely older. “You must be Mrs. Miyahara.”

“I am.” Keiko’s mother crossed her arms, but she didn’t look angry. She looked at her daughter with concern.

“I’m Makoto Niijima, Keiko’s friend.” Makoto paused, expecting a response, but it took Keiko’s mother a little bit of time. “Uh, she’s not drunk.”

“Huh?” Mrs. Miyahara startled. “I didn’t think she was. I’m trying to figure out how I’m going to get her upstairs. I’m Aya. It’s nice to meet you.” 

Neither of them rushed to pick Keiko up. She was having too much fun counting the ceiling tiles. “One, two, three-” She paused. “Shit. One, two, three-”

“Concussion?”

“Big time,” Makoto said. “She was at LeBlanc with a friend of ours. She passed out, and we’re guessing she hit her head on the table.”

Aya sighed. “She’s her father’s child. If we had a dollar for every concussion, we’d be living in a loft in Shibuya.”

“Hey! This is my first one,” Keiko shouted as she gathered herself. “And I don’t like it up the ass, so-”

“Keiko!” Makoto and Aya spoke at the same time, then shared an awkward glance.

“Well, I guess I should be thankful she has someone to talk about her problems with?” Aya chuckled, trying to make the best of an awkward situation. “I’m sorry about her.”

“Oh, there’s a lot to be sorry for,” Makoto said, exasperated. “She’s a handful.”

“Always has been. Come on.” She hooked Keiko’s arm. “Let’s sit on the couch, and you can tell me more about your girlfriend.”

“Mom!” She elongated the long ‘o’ sound. “She’s not-”

“You’re a dumbass, Keiko.” Aya laughed, then looked over at Makoto. “You said Niijima, right?”

“Yes,” Makoto said. 

Aya’s eyes lit up. “Do you know Ari Shirai?”

“Uh,” Makoto looked at Keiko, who offered no help. “That was my mother.”

“The red eyes gave it away.” Aya smiled, but her eyes looked sad. The smile turned into a frown. “I miss her.”

“I didn’t realize my mom had friends,” Makoto said with a chuckle. She only really remembered her mother being her father’s brain. 

Aya shrugged. “She was my brain before she was Takeo’s.”

“One, two, three, four…” Keiko was back to counting the ceiling tiles as she shifted on the couch, her head on Makoto’s lap and her feet on her mother’s. 

Makoto didn’t know what to say.

“You can sleep on the couch tonight, if you’d like,” Aya said. “I’d prefer you two not share a room.”

“I would never-”

“The walls are too thin.”

“Oh my god.” Makoto groaned. “There are two of you.”

===

_ Friday, July 22, Morning _

“Senpai!” Keiko waited for the train at Shibuya station when she was accosted by a short girl with a red bow. “I’m so happy you’re back.”

Keiko’s mother wouldn’t let her go back to school until she was sure Keiko had shaken the cobwebs out. Considering it took until this morning for Keiko to stand up without getting dizzy, her mother might’ve been onto something. 

“Hey, Sumi-chan.” Keiko yawned. “I don’t know how I can sleep for nearly three days and still be tired.”

“How’s your head feeling?”

“Better,” Keiko nodded. “Did I really hit my head on the table?”

“You don’t do anything halfway,” Kasumi giggled. “It was funny until Sojiro said you passed out. He thought it was because the curry was too spicy.”

Keiko grumbled. “Does that old man really think I can’t handle spicy curry?”

Kasumi shrugged. “I think he was trying to make me feel better.”

“Oh, right,” Keiko said. “Sorry. That couldn’t have been fun.”

They split off, heading to their respective classes.

===

_ Lunchtime _

“Hey, you’ve mentioned an Alibaba before, right?” Makoto and Keiko couldn’t join Kawakami for lunch today because she wasn’t at school. ‘She must be sick,’ Keiko thought.

“Uh, yeah. That’s Futaba’s screen name. Why?”

A lightbulb went off over Makoto’s head. “That’s where I’d heard the name!”

Then she fired off a million text messages inside the next minute. “Can I ask what you’re doing?”

“A hacker by the name of Alibaba contacted Ren in hopes of having Futaba Sakura’s heart changed and-”

“No way.” Keiko gasped. “What the fuck is Futaba thinking?”

Makoto didn’t respond. Keiko was torn between wanting to rip into Makoto for even thinking of going after Futaba, or ripping into Futaba for trying whatever the fuck it was she thought she was trying.

“Futaba isn’t a criminal.”

“None of us think that.” Makoto sighed. “Do you think you could meet up with all of us and tell us about her?”

“I don’t really know much. I know she’s Sojiro’s adopted daughter, and that her mom researched cognitive psience, and that’s basically it.” Keiko shrugged.

“That’s more than any of us have. We can meet in LeBlanc’s attic.”

===

_ After School _

Ren swore up and down that he loved his depressing-ass attic room. Keiko was inclined to believe him, only because he argued so vehemently. 

“I guess it does fit your personality quite well,” Keiko said. “The Risette poster is a nice touch.”

“I never took you for much of an idol kind-of-guy, Ren,” Makoto said. “But doesn’t Risette kind of look like Kasumi? That makes sense.”

Ren blushed slightly. “Not in front of everyone-”

“What?” Keiko said in a loud, mocking voice. “Ren has a crush on Kasumi?”

Everyone else in the room laughed, except Ann, who gave Keiko a death glare so severe she was worried she’d never see the light of day again.

“Uh,” Makoto nervously tried to change the subject before her girlfriend got herself roasted alive. “Keiko has some information relating to Alibaba that should help our investigation.”

“Wait,” Keiko said. “I was told never to give information without getting anything in return.”

“That wasn’t-”

Ren interrupted Makoto before she could complain. “What are your terms?”

“How, exactly, do you steal a heart?”

“I would have told you!!” Makoto grunted in frustration.

“Eh. It’s more fun this way.” Keiko shrugged.

“You’re impossible.” Ren had to grab Makoto’s arm to keep her from storming off.

“Makoto, stop,” Ren scolded. “But you have to tell me what you know about the black mask.”

“See, I’m not really sure whether or not that’s real or if it’s something my concussed brain made up to make myself hate Akechi more.” Keiko looked around the room at the shocked faces of the Phantom Thieves. “Do I have something in my teeth?”

“No, it’s just-” Ann gave her an odd look. “Do you really think black mask is Akechi?”

Keiko shrugged. “I have these dreams every once in a while. I’m not really in control at all, like I can’t talk.”

“That’s probably a good thing,” Makoto said. “If I get frustrated when you talk, I can’t imagine how somebody who hates you feels.”

“Hush. You love it.” Keiko tried, and failed at the implication she just made. “The dreams are foggy though. I wouldn’t have recognized him. Black mask, black and blue striped outfit. It was definitely Akechi. He complained about a wild goose chase Futaba sent him on.”

“What do you do when I’m not around?” Makoto asked incredulously.

“Excuse me for trying to distract Akechi while  _ somebody _ stupidly confronted a mob boss!” Keiko’s tone shut Makoto down immediately. “After our date,” Keiko made air quotes. “Futaba placed a fake phone call to Akechi pretending there was a school shooting.”

“Okay,” Ren raised an eyebrow. “Where did she get audio from a school shooting?”

Ryuji and Ann both looked at him like he was nuts. “What? I know this isn’t the time, but she can’t leave that out. It’s not like we’re in a hurry.”

Keiko shrugged. “I asked, and she told me America. I didn’t question it.”

“That’s so fucked up.” Everyone nodded in agreement with Ren. 

“Anyway, he bitched and moaned about Futaba’s trick, which is how I know it was him. She’ll be able to confirm that story if I can get her to leave the house.”

“So, Futaba is Alibaba?” Ren asked, looking for confirmation from what Keiko could tell.

“Yes. She also used to be Medjed.”

Makoto’s eyes narrowed. “How is that  _ not _ the first thing you tell us?”   
“She’s stressed enough as it is!” Keiko raised her voice. “I fucking told Ren that some guy pretending to be Medjed was after me. I can’t make all the connections for him.”

“Is Futaba threatening us on two different fronts?”

Keiko shook her head. “She’s not Medjed anymore. She actually started fucking with the guy that stole the name on my behalf. It’s no surprise that he’s made a big play now that she’s out of the picture.”

“Okay,” Ren said. “Futaba wants us to steal her heart. Do you know why?”

“Kind of?” She motioned with her hand like she was weighing the possibility. “Her mother thought cognitive psience was the key to solving behavioral and mental problems pain-free. Futaba is a shut-in with depression. She might be banking on what little knowledge she has of her mother’s research.”

“What’s her ma’s research have to do with us?” 

“Okay, so did Ryuji just repeat something the cat said or did he actually come up with that question on his own?” Keiko looked at him. “Wait, that was mean.”

“Uh, not all that insulted.” Ryuji shrugged.

“He only fights back when Morgana insults him,” Ren said.

“Anyway, I don’t know. Sojiro mentioned cognition, which made me think of what you guys do.”

“Right,” Ren said. “I’m assuming Makoto’s explained cognitions before?”

“Sort of. We haven’t gone into detail. She mostly brags about getting to blow shit up.”

“That was private-”

“Oh, please.” Keiko rolled her eyes. “You’re worried about the people that see you as a leather-clad biker thinking you’re some kind of loose cannon?”

“A palace is its owner’s cognition,” Ren said, ignoring their petty squabble. “It’s a type of extended metaphor for how they view their surroundings. Kamoshida’s was a castle, and he was the king.”

“Right, and Kaneshiro’s was a bank,” Keiko said. “That makes sense.”

“What’s Futaba’s?” Ren asked, and everyone looked at Keiko.

“I have no idea.” Keiko tried to think. She didn’t know much about Alibaba other than she mained Cleopatra on Civ. Futaba didn’t talk much about anything not related to the game. She was always quick to help out whenever Keiko needed anything, and she constantly spied on her. She was probably listening in on this entire conversation. “She mains Cleopatra when we play Civ. And her old name was Medjed. Something Egyptian?”

“Pyramids?” Ren tossed out. 

“Oh!” Keiko grinned at first, then frowned. “A tomb.”

“We should get moving on this immediately.” Ren gestured, and they all started walking towards Sojiro’s house. “Keiko, can you get her a message?”

“I can try.”

“Tell Futaba we’re going to change her heart.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swore I posted this chapter already. It's very strange looking at the Google doc for a fic and see it say "last edited 7 days ago" but here I am. I think there's no point in me saying "this was a fun chapter" after every chapter but both of my fics are a joy to write. Like, they're so much of a joy that it snowed out yesterday and I don't even feel sad about it. 
> 
> I'm trying so hard not to turn this fic into a fluff-fest but Keiko/Makoto is too fucking cute and I'm going to die.


	13. Keiko Gaslights the Cops

_ Friday, July 22, After School _

Keiko hated how silent Sojiro’s house was. She felt dumb even knocking on Futaba’s door, because the recluse had to have known somebody was in the house. ‘I should just barge in. She would.’ Keiko knocked anyway. It was the polite thing to do.

“Futaba, it’s me,” Keiko spoke quietly, hoping to avoid spooking the girl. “I talked to Ren.”

**Alibaba:** What’d he say?

“They’re going to change your heart.”

Keiko swore she heard a happy squeak come from behind the door. ‘This might be a good time to ask, while she’s in a good mood.’

“Futaba, I have some questions you might be able to answer about Medjed,” Keiko said. “If I text you, can you answer them?”

“I will.”

Hearing Futaba’s voice brightened Keiko’s day considerably. Keiko left, making her way back home because Makoto was busy with the Phantom Thieves trying to infiltrate Futaba’s palace. Keiko had an investigation of her own.

**SendNews:** Kazou Ryou was the guy pretending to be Medjed

**Alibaba:** Yeah. It’s still him.

**SendNews:** can I warn Ren?

**Alibaba:** surprised you haven’t already

Keiko couldn’t figure out what Ryou wanted from the Thieves. She assumed at first that he was a massive fan of Kamoshida, but even having an Olympic gold medal wouldn’t justify the level of devotion he seemed to draw. He had long since stopped bombarding Keiko’s email with threats, but she’d also not done much reporting on Kamoshida, specifically. She’d reported on the Phantom Thieves, but her work was only in-depth because of her proximity to them. 

It was a beat that fell into her lap, not one given to her because of any qualifications. That would hopefully lead them to underestimate her, she hoped. Getting something on Ryou is the kind of story Keiko could only dream of.

Unfortunately, the only thing Keiko found shady about Ryou was his campaign donations to Masayoshi Shido, something that wasn’t particularly egregious. He’s a rich guy who owns a million dollar business supporting a conservative politician yearning for the good old days. It was as stereotypical as ‘journalist who drinks too much coffee’ or ‘overworked lawyer alienates her family.’

‘Now that I think about it, Sae is basically just the main character of those shitty romance novels my dad reads,’ Keiko thought. 

Keiko hated feeling like she was missing something. She could feel everything connecting in her head, but she couldn’t quite explain the connections. Ryou Internet Security was now going after the Phantom Thieves for reasons she couldn’t understand. Multiple people in her life were adamant that she avoided cognitive psience as a topic. What little they knew of cognitive psience aligned with the Phantom Thieves’ methods, but it couldn’t be confirmed.

She wanted no part of making decisions based on information that couldn’t be confirmed. 

Keiko brewed a pot of coffee and sat down in front of her computer. Maybe there was a connection between Ryou and the mental shutdown incidents, and in turn cognitive psience, and then the Phantom Thieves.

===

_ Evening _

Keiko only found circumstantial connections. Ryou’s contemporaries started dying far too young starting two years ago. She hadn’t made much of recent opinion pieces discussing how it had crippled Japan’s technological development, but she was beginning to understand the connections people were making. Ryou hadn’t drawn any blame, of course, but had anyone known to implicate him, they would have seen the signs. The most recent dead peer was an American foreigner just a few weeks ago. Many American websites eulogized him as a promising innovator and entrepreneur whose life ended too abruptly because of unknown personal demons. Keiko couldn’t find a connection other than him sharing a field with Ryou and him visiting Japan as a guest of a politician hoping to announce his candidacy for Prime Minister. The death derailed both an American company and the candidate, who was now under investigation after his young guest died of an apparent drug overdose. 

‘Shady,’ Keiko thought. ‘But there’s still no concrete connection.’ She couldn’t shake the idea that these deaths were mental shutdowns. 

She also couldn’t shake the idea that she was driving herself insane. Keiko felt like she was on the verge of becoming some kind of conspiracy nutjob and it was starting to cloud her judgment.

Keiko heard the front door open and decided she needed a break. She could talk to her mom about whatever it was she said while she was still loopy from her injury. She went downstairs to find her mother bringing in groceries from the store down the road.

“You need any help?”

“Depends,” she shrugged. “You know a good shrink?”

Keiko chuckled. “The school just hired a counselor. He seems to do a good job.”

“Something tells me he wouldn’t be willing to talk to somebody that’s not school age,” she said, putting a few items away in the cabinet before reaching over and throwing meat in the fridge. “You been talking to him?”

Keiko shook her head. “I just did an interview with him for a story, is all. I’m not quite crazy enough for a therapist yet.”

Her mother rolled her eyes and smiled. “You’re crazy, alright.”

Their home had a small kitchen that was visible from the living room, so Keiko plopped on the couch and turned on the TV. She rarely had the time to just relax and watch whatever was on.

It made sense that the one time she did, Akechi’s face vandalized the screen, along with some random hack TV host that failed to get Keiko on his show. 

“Japan should not be the battleground for two vigilante groups.” Keiko rolled her eyes. Akechi was scolding the show’s host for being excited about the Phantom Thieves and Medjed duking it out. “Their job is not to decide innocence or guilt. The idea of a cleanse, or the reception of a calling card implies guilt without a trial, which I cannot stand for.”

“You fucking dipshit,” Keiko rolled her eyes and clicked off the TV. “You decided the Phantom Thieves were guilty without a trial. Investigations under the suspicion of automatic guilt are worthless!”

She could hear her mother laughing from the kitchen. “I’m going to send you to live with your grandfather. You two can shout at the news together.”

Keiko furrowed her brow and shouted back. “Does grandpa have a hooker problem? That might be preferable.”

“It-” her mother startled. “Becky isn’t a hooker!”

Keiko lost it. “Her name is fucking Becky?” She was overcome with laughter she couldn’t control. “Bum-play Becky.”

“Stop it!” Her mother shouted back but Keiko couldn’t stop laughing. 

The laughter, much to her mothers chagrin, for several minutes. Keiko finally calmed. “I’m sorry,” she said, still coming down from the laughing fit. “I’ll try and drop it.”

Her mother sighed, then took a seat next to her on the couch.

“Did you ever clean this thing?”

“Why?”

“...I’m just-” Keiko looked around. “Are there any pieces of furniture that you haven’t-” she made a circle with her left hand and stuck her right pointer finger through it- “on?”

“Um.” Her mother looked around the room. “I plead the fifth.”

“That’s not-” Keiko sighed. “Nevermind. I’m going to bathe in holy water.”

They sat in an awkward silence for a bit.

“So, how about that girlfriend of yours?” Keiko’s mother desperately tried to create some kind of conversation.

It wasn’t as tired an attempt as would have been made months ago, so Keiko went along with it. “Makoto’s great,” Keiko shrugged. “What do you want to know?”

Her mom startled. “Would you actually tell me?”

“Why wouldn’t I tell you?” Keiko leaned back into the sofa, then started digging in between the cushions. She realized her movement caused the TV remote to fall into the old couch’s nethers.

“You never really tell us anything,” her mom shrugged in a way that looked like a mirror image of Keiko.

“Neither of you ever ask.” Keiko glared back. Her mom looked down. “Like, it’s something I’ve made peace with.”

Her mother returned the look. “You’ve scrambled around like a madwoman for the last three months. When was I supposed to ask?” 

“Ah,” Keiko said, feeling a bit guilty. “That’s a good point.”

“And then you finally start hanging around and we find out you have a girlfriend?” Her mother laughed. “I think the miscommunications are on more than just us.”

“Sorry, mom,” she replied, sounding a bit downtrodden.

“It’s quite alright.” Her mom tried to wave off Keiko’s guilt. “Just because there’s mutual blame, doesn’t mean you aren’t at least partially right. Your work is almost always boring as shit.”

“Mom!” Keiko tried to sound offended, but she couldn’t hold back her laughter. “Hey, if you know it’s boring, that means you’ve at least read some of it.”

Her mom shrugged. “I gotta do something when I’m bored at work.” 

“I’m glad I’m your priority,” Keiko said with a laugh that died down fairly quickly. They sat in silence for a little longer. She knew she had an objective when she came downstairs. “So, are you okay with the whole Makoto thing?”

Her mother gave her a surprised look. “Why wouldn’t we be?”

“Uh,” Keiko had expected some sort of push back, maybe not a full blown fight, but something. “I just-” she stammered. “It’s not exactly a normal thing.”

“It’s normal enough,” her mother reassured her. “Just don’t take after your father.”

Keiko gave her mother a cautious look. “Do I want to know  _ why _ I shouldn’t take after dad?”

“Almost definitely not, no.” Then she laughed.

“I don’t even know what you’re insinuating and I’m somehow still disgusted,” Keiko said, holding her face in her hands. 

“That’s the proper reaction.” She wore a stupid grin on her face that Keiko recognized and was immediately ashamed of. “Your father’s a weirdo.”

“For the first time in my life, I’m just going to let this one go and not question any further.” 

“Smart.” Now she wore a different grin that was less gross. “Now, no more stalling. Tell me about her!”

“You’re gonna need to be more specific, Mom,” Keiko said, hoping her mother wasn’t smart enough to come up with a specific question, although her shit-eating grin told Keiko otherwise. ‘Huh. Has she been hanging out with Ren, too?’ Keiko realized at this point, that maybe she hadn’t been borrowing from Ren as much as she thought.

“Have you two kissed yet?”

“Mom!” Keiko said, appalled. Or at least, she was pretending to be appalled.

“I’m not hearing a no,” her mom teased. “I remember being that age-”

“It’s none of your business!” Keiko argued. She didn’t want her mother having as intimate of a knowledge of her life as she had of her mother’s. 

“I could tell you all about my first kiss if you-” Keiko tried to interrupt but her mom talked right over her. “I think I was in like fifth grade-”

“Fifth grade!?” 

“Your grandfather wasn’t around and your grandmother is a bad influence,” she shrugged. “Do you want me to finish my story?” Her mother asked in a tone that suggested Keiko asked her to tell the story in the first place.

“I already said no, damn it,” Keiko slouched further into the sofa. She knew better than to just walk away but she really wanted her mom to stop talking. “You’re probably going to tell me anyway.”

“You’re right!” She chirped. “I always knew you were the brains of the family. Now, where to begin. Have you ever heard the tale of Darth Plagueis the-”

“Mom!” Keiko’s eyes nearly rolled out of her head while her mother laughed like a lunatic. “Is there an actual story here or not?”

“There is,” she said, still cackling. “But you should have seen your face! Can you make it again? I’ll put it on our Christmas cards.”

Keiko grumbled something inaudible and tried to stand up, but her mom grabbed her hand. 

“I’m sorry,” she said, still trying to hide a laugh, Keiko could tell. “I’ll behave.”

“There’s a first time for everything,” Keiko said sardonically. 

She received a motherly smile in return. “You know, you could get out of hearing my mushy old stories by telling me your own.”

Keiko sighed. “I’ll tell you. Well, maybe I won’t tell you  _ everything _ but I’ll tell you most of it.” Keiko meant to imply they did  _ more, _ but what she really meant was she would leave out the Phantom Thieves things. This gave her plausible deniability if she needed it.

“You gonna need a beer to get through this?”

“What?” Keiko glared at her mom, trying to gauge whether or not she was being serious. “If you’re offering, I mean…”

“I’ll need one.” She got up and came back with two light blue cans. “I’m already feeling old.”

Keiko opened her beer, which smelled terrible, if she was being honest. “You  _ are _ old.” She took a sip. It didn’t taste great, either. It wasn’t terrible, though. 

“Age is just a number, dear,” Her mother said, opening her can and taking a sip. 

Keiko glanced at her. “I better not find you two swinging with my classmates next.”

“Well, there’s that cute boy down at-”

Her mother wasn’t going to be allowed to finish that sentence. “I’m giving you the option of not finishing that sentence. I suggest you take it.”

“Jeez,” she shrugged and rubbed the back of her neck. “It was just a joke.”

“I think he’s taken, anyway,” Keiko said, although that was just conjecture. Ann sure seemed upset when she mentioned Ren’s crush on Kasumi. “Or something. He’s either taken, or he has women fighting over him.”

“Were you one of them?”

Keiko startled. “No way. I won’t say I didn’t think about it, but something about it wouldn’t have felt right. I just kind of fell into things with Makoto.”

“What happened?”

“How much have I told you about Kamoshida?”

Her mother thought for a bit. “You told me he went after you because you wrote a story about a new kid who he didn’t like.”

Keiko nodded. “That’s basically what happened. A few weeks after that, he sexually assaulted-”

“Call it what it is, Keiko.” Her mother said sternly. “Reading newspapers pisses me off sometimes. ‘Such and such sexually assaulted…’ No, he didn’t. It’s rape.”

“Raped,” she said. Keiko was having difficulty facing how ugly his actions were. She didn’t realize her mother paid that much attention to it. “He raped Shiho Suzui. Knowing nobody would be able to do anything for her, she attempted suicide by jumping off the school’s roof.”

“Oh.” Her mother frowned. “Is Shiho-?”

Keiko shook her head. “She’s alive. Her best friend is a good friend of mine. Ann visits Shiho every day she can. I guess she’s starting to walk again, and they think she’ll make a full recovery, physically.”

“You really know how to make what should be a happy story depressing, you know that?” Mom smiled, though. 

“Such is life,” Keiko shrugged. “Anyway, Kamoshida had this plan to get the kid you mentioned earlier, Ren, and two of his friends expelled for accusing him of attacking Shiho.”

“But he actually did attack Shiho,” her mother looked horrified.

“Yeah. He’s a real piece of shit. He wanted to deflect, and have anyone with evidence expelled. He actually tried to have me expelled before all this, but I did a good enough job bootlicking to convince him otherwise.”

“You didn’t-” Keiko could read the disgust on her mother’s face.

“No. After I offered to give them good publicity, he left me alone, and by the time I reneged, the evidence was piling up. Posting the video online was Makoto’s idea.”

Keiko’s mom chuckled. “I can’t believe you had to be told that was a good idea.”

“I didn’t know I even had access to a website, okay?” Keiko still felt pretty dumb about never asking for access to the school’s website. It would have been basic and easy to set up. “You’ll stop making fun of me if you want to hear the rest of the story.”

“Oh, please.” Her mother rolling her eyes like a teenager was a funny sight. “Did she really steal your heart through work?”

Keiko wished she had Makoto with her to weaponize her glare. Keiko’s didn’t have the same effects. “Fine. No more.”

“Stop,” she said, looking hurt. “I’ll be nice.”

“Better be,” Keiko said. She continued with the story, leaving out some bits and details, like that time she saw Makoto naked and most of the Phantom Thieves things. She couldn’t leave out parts of it, though. “I don’t really know how to explain this because I don't understand it, but have you ever seen someone who one day just seems like a completely different person? Like something just-” Keiko snapped her fingers- “changed. Like, I thought I was hopelessly crushing on this girl who had no interest in me that way.” She sighed. “Well, there were a few signs, I guess.” Keiko thought back to all the times Makoto comforted her and vice versa, or the slightly awkward hug after Makoto’s long conversation with Lala and Ren. “I don’t want to say I didn’t see it coming, but one day she just outright said it.”

“Did something happen?”

‘Yes. Something did happen,’ Keiko wanted to say. “I don’t know. She’d gone out with some of our friends. I met up with her after and she just dropped it on me.”

“Maybe those friends knew something you didn’t,” she said, shrugging. “Maybe they did some convincing and the feelings took over.”

‘No shit,’ Keiko thought. “I guess Ren and Kasumi knew before we did.”

“That’s usually how it works. I knew about Makoto’s parents for a year before they had a clue.” She chuckled nostalgically. “We all went off to college and the next time I saw them, they were married and pregnant with the oldest one.”

Keiko had a hard time thinking of Sae Niijima as a child. ‘She probably changed her own diapers.’ “Anyway, that’s basically what happened,” Keiko said, looking at the clock and realizing Makoto would be done some time soon. “We had our first kiss a few weeks later and now we have to dance around it whenever her sister’s around because neither of us have any idea if she’ll freak out or not.” 

“Want me to put her in her place?”

Keiko outright guffawed, and felt the need to apologize for it. “I would pay money to watch you try. Sae is pretty intimidating.”

“There’s no way she’s worse than Ari.” Keiko’s mom stared off into space then shuddered. “Just some advice: Never get less than an A on an exam around them.”

“Already learned that lesson. I so much as joked about Makoto being a distraction and she asked if I wanted her to go away,” Keiko chuckled. “Thank god we weren’t together yet. She might’ve broken up with me.”

“Probably not. If she’s anything like her mom, she’d have you up all night for a month, and not in the fun way,” she said. Keiko hated her mom’s laugh because it made her feel self conscious of her own.

“Can you stop being gross?” It was technically a question, but Keiko left the upward inflection off in hopes her disgust showed properly. Her mom looked down. “So, did I answer all of your questions?”

“Not really, but enough of them that I’ll stop bugging you.” She chuckled. “I wanted to hear you gush and tell me how cute she is.”

“Oh, she’s adorable, but I figured you’d be more curious about why your daughter hasn’t been home in months,” Keiko said.

Their conversation ended when there was a knock on the door. Makoto must’ve been done for the night. 

She wasn’t properly prepared for Aya’s knowing smile or the millions of questions that followed. It was more exhausting than any palace infiltration.

===

_ Monday, August 1, Afternoon _

Keiko rolled over and nearly fell out of her bed. Summer vacation left her in a rut, without a paper to throw together or a girlfriend to distract her from her boredom. It turned her typically well-deserved Monday nap into something that made her feel guilty. The slow progress on Futaba’s palace meant she spent her days alone, mostly.The days Keiko and Makoto spent together were fewer than she would have liked, although it wasn’t all doom and gloom. Yusuke sent Keiko a wonderful painting of Mouse-koto, which she framed and set on her nightstand. Makoto’s horror when she discovered it days later made the loneliness worth it.

“You make the cutest mouse!” Keiko didn’t like how her voice squeaked when she said it. “What’s with the mask, though?”

Makoto shrugged. They finally had a free afternoon, and they opted to spend it together. The couple would get coffee in LeBlanc before heading to Shinjuku. “We all have them. They’re a symbol of the masks we wear in our everyday life.”

“That’s pre-paw-sterous,” Keiko replied, laughing even harder at her girlfriend’s frustrated glare. “Ha. See what I did there? Pre-”

“I get the joke,” Makoto pouted. 

“Is your mask seriously made of metal, or did Yusuke take artistic license?”

“It’s made of steel,” Makoto said quietly, continuing her pout. Keiko decided it was in her best interests to shut up before Makoto shut down for the day out of spite.

Sojiro was in okay spirits, which meant Futaba must be keeping her promise by eating twice per day. Keiko didn’t want to stay long, though, so they only stayed for a cup of coffee. She had a favor to burn with Ohya, and she didn’t want to be in Shinjuku at night. It was something Futaba could have handled easily, but she decided the recluse had gone through enough. It wasn’t like Keiko had an outlet to write a story for, anyway. She didn’t mind giving away a lead. 

Keiko and Makoto had gone to Crossroads enough times now that they could just walk straight there from the station without getting bugged. They learned pretty quickly that as long as they kept their eyes forward and focused on their objective, the obnoxious assholes lining the streets left them alone. It helped that Makoto wore something sleeveless. Keiko appreciated it, at least.

They arrived at opening time. Ohya was waiting outside, as both parties had beaten Lala to the bar. 

“Shit,” Ohya grumbled. “When you said ‘afternoon’ you really weren’t kidding.” Her cheeks didn’t have the normal reddish hue and her eyes weren’t bloodshot.

“Holy fuck,” Keiko said, floored when she made the realization. “You’re sober.”

“Huh? What of it?”

“I’ve never seen you sober.” Keiko would have continued, but Makoto placed a hand on her shoulder and gave her a hushing look.

“Yeah, kid.” Ohya shrugged. “I try to limit that as much as possible. I’m sure whatever you tell me is gonna make me want to drink.”

“How little faith do you have in me?”

“I’d argue it’s because I have faith in you that I know what you have to say is going to make me want to drink,” Ohya deadpanned. 

Lala opened up the door and chuckled. “I’m not used to having a line,” she said with a friendly smile as the three piled in. Keiko and Ohya immediately headed to the back booth where they could talk privately, not allowing Ohya the time to order a drink. Keiko wanted her sober, and it would go faster if Ohya was sober. She didn’t plan on spending her whole afternoon in a bar.

“So?” Ohya gave her a dirty look. “I’m here, I’m sober, and you forced me to skip my after-work nap. What’s up?”

Keiko legitimately felt bad. If she set aside naptime, she  _ set aside naptime and nothing would change it. _ Ohya must’ve really thought she was important.

Given the angry look when Keiko didn’t start talking soon enough, she gathered there wasn’t as much fondness there as she hoped for.

“What do you know about Kazou Ryou?”

“I told you to avoid the mental shutdown cases.” Ohya said. “I meant it.”

“Well, that wasn’t why I was asking about him. I didn’t know he was involved.” Keiko had her suspicions of his involvement, but she really wasn’t coming to Ohya in regards to the mental shutdowns.

Ohya sighed. “You’re a shitty liar.”

“I swear, I’m not lying,” Keiko said. There was a powerless feeling that came from telling a truth received as a lie. 

She must’ve sounded desperate, because Ohya relented slightly. “Okay. Sure.” It wasn’t quite a sarcastic comment, but Keiko felt it disingenuous. “I know that anyone who innovates in the same industry as Ryou ends up dead. Have you made the Shido connection yet?”

Keiko was afraid to say yes, but she nodded. “I have.”

“Same thing happens with Shido,” Ohya said. “If you see a death that seems convenient for their agenda, it’s no coincidence.”

Keiko nodded. “Surprised I’m not dead yet.”

“Me too.” Ohya shrugged. “I’ve heard your name come up a few times with some of my colleagues.” She spoke dryly, as if this wasn’t something Keiko should be excited about.

“What’re you hearing?” Keiko didn’t expect her to indulge the question. Ohya had already shared more information than she would have on a typical visit.

“The same shit I heard about Kayo before  _ they _ had her killed.” Ohya looked profoundly uncomfortable. “There’s a rumor that you’re involved with Medjed.”

Keiko laughed, and hard. “Holy shit.” She couldn’t control it. “That-” she stammered through her laughter. “Who comes up with this shit?”

“It’s all rumor and conspiracy right now.” Ohya didn’t think it was nearly as funny. “But the talk is you had an in with somebody who could feed you information on the Phantom Thieves, and you used that for your reporting.”

‘That is far too close to the truth,’ Keiko thought. Ohya didn’t notice her discomfort.

Ohya continued. “But your in went away, and that’s why you haven’t reported anything in a few weeks. You stopped reporting right as Medjed issued their challenge.”

“That’s absurd,” Keiko said. “You people are fucking morons.”

“Excuse you?” Ohya gave her a look that said ‘you have 10 seconds before I punch you.’

‘I could take her, probably,’ Keiko thought. “I don’t print in the summer. School’s out. I’m not a reporter until everything starts back up in September.” She had to keep her sardonic laughter to a minimum, because Ohya was giving her the dumbest look imaginable. “Summer means I’m a regular kid, just like everyone else.”

“Wait,” Ohya said, smiling like a lightbulb went off. “Does this mean you’re freelancing?”

Keiko hadn’t thought about it. It would be a great way to make extra money, plus Futaba’s change of heart could expose Ryou. That would be a hell of a story, and she already has the jump on it. “I suppose I could.”

“Is that why you were asking about Ryou?”

“Partially,” Keiko lied. “I’ve discovered a connection between the mental shutdowns and the Tokyo Police Department’s detective division.”

“How?”

“You won’t want to hear my answer.”

“My liver probably doesn’t, but my ears do,” Ohya said, chuckling. “Lay it on me.”

“I’m best friends with Wakaba Isshiki’s daughter.”

Ohya startled and her voice turned frantic. “Keiko, please listen to me. Back up and slowly turn around, walk away, and never have this conversation with anyone again.”

Keiko ignored her. “We discovered Ryou is operating as Medjed.”

Ohya’s prediction that whatever Keiko had to say would make her want to drink was correct.

“Remember back when you thought I was just a stupid kid that walked into a story that was way over my head?” Ohya nodded. “Ryou, acting as Medjed, took me less seriously than you did. He sent me a bunch of threatening emails telling me to leave Kamoshida alone. Isshiki’s daughter is a hacker. Like, a ridiculously good hacker, and was able to trace everything back to him.”

“He’s a fucking internet security nerd. Isn’t Isshiki’s daughter like, 15?” Ohya wore a curious face. “Why didn’t she out him?” Ohya asked, raising an eyebrow. 

Keiko leaned back in her seat. “She’s agoraphobic. After her mom died-”

“I know the story,” Ohya frowned. “Kayo tried to report on it.”

“Good. I don’t really feel like rehashing those details,” Keiko said. “Anyway, at the time, I was small potatoes. I decided against saying anything because explaining how I got his data would be difficult.”

“But now that he’s gone after the Phantom Thieves in an extremely public way, an anonymous source has more credibility,” Ohya said. “You do this on purpose?”

Keiko chuckled. “Can I pretend I did?”

Ohya shrugged. “I would. When you think the story will be done?”

“I’m thinking of planning a cleanse of my own,” Keiko grinned. “If I’m going to stay alive, I’m going to need a circus around this. If I die, it needs to be as public as possible.”

“Well, in that case, I’ve given you a lot of information today.” Ohya smirked at Keiko. 

“Actually, I’m pretty sure I gave you-”

“Hush. You’ll like this. It’s not often I get to write a feature on another journalist.”

“Oh.” Keiko grinned. “You’re right. I love this idea.” 

“I’ll give you a couple weeks to come up with something interesting to say,” Ohya said. She stood up out of the booth, and pulled Keiko’s arm back towards the bar. “I need a drink, and I’m sure Lala has talked your friend’s ear off.”

It was a short walk towards the bar. Ohya ordered her drink wordlessly, needing only a nod towards Lala. Makoto stood up when Keiko walked over.

“I’ll see you later, Lala-chan,” Makoto said in a friendly tone Keiko didn’t hear her use with many people.

The two left crossroads and would have started making their way towards the station had Makoto not noticed a familiar girl dressed as a maid walking into a cafe.

“That’s Eiko,” Makoto leaned into Keiko's ear. 

“Who the fuck is Eiko?”

“She’s in a couple of my classes,” she said in a hushed tone. “Why is she working at a maid cafe?”

“It’s not really our business-”

“What if she’s being taken advantage of?”

“Uh,” Keiko shrugged. “Then I suppose it’s your duty to fix that, isn’t it?”

“Why do you sound so apprehensive?”

Keiko sighed. “You’re lucky you’re cute.” ‘And lucky I’m about to tell you my plan, which will almost definitely get me killed.’

===

_ Evening _

Keiko stared out the window. The Niijima apartment had a wonderful view of the city that provided a nice distraction from telling Makoto her convoluted plan. 

“You could talk to me instead of staring out the window,” Makoto said, catching on to Keiko’s distant behavior.

“I could,” Keiko said with a small smile. “But this way I can pretend I’m not about to do something stupid.”

Makoto rolled her eyes, seating herself next to Keiko on the couch. Keiko opened her arms, welcoming her in. Their eyes met, and Keiko almost melted. ‘We could just make out for a while and forget I ever made that stupid plan-’

“So. What stupid plan did you come up with?”

‘Damn it.’ “I think I might be able to solve your Medjed problem.”

She felt Makoto startle in her arms. “What? Futaba could handle it-”

“But should she? Why is that her responsibility?” Keiko didn’t want Futaba involved any more than she had to be.

“She told Ren she’d take care of Medjed after we change her heart.” 

Keiko didn’t know that. Futaba hadn’t told her that and neither did Ren. “I thought you guys were just doing this because it’s the right thing to do.”

Makoto nodded. “Alibaba- I mean, Futaba, demanded she provide something in return.”

‘That makes sense,’ Keiko thought. Futaba always operated that way. It was a trait they shared. “Okay. This might work, though.”

“Are you going to do it no matter what I say?”

“Did you confront a mafia boss against the wishes of literally everybody?”

“Will you ever let that go?”

“After this plan? I might not have a choice,” Keiko tried to grin but Makoto’s soft look prevented her from laughing. 

“Oh.” Makoto took a deep breath. “It’s  _ that _ dangerous. Lay it on me.”

Keiko leaned in and kissed her, which was nice, but the second it broke Makoto grabbed her ear lightly. 

“I meant the plan,” she giggled. “That was nice, though.”

Keiko sighed and relayed the plan. “It’s long, and you’re going to need to let me finish the whole thing without interjecting. Can you do that?”

Makoto nodded. “I’m not nearly as rude as you.”

“Ohya is going to write a feature story on me. She’s cleared to do that since I technically don’t work anywhere in the summer. We’re doing this because they won’t kill me if my profile is high enough. A celebrity with a squeaky clean reputation dropping dead at the age of 16 isn’t normal, and they won’t be able to spin their way out of it.”

Makoto gripped Keiko’s hand, but didn’t interrupt her.

“On the same day as the supposed cleanse, I’m going to come forward with information on Medjed that I already have. Futaba came up with identifying information on them when they went after me for my stories on Kamoshida. It’s Kazou Ryou pretending to be Medjed. I’m taking a gamble in assuming he’s the same person that’s coming after you. I’m going to expose him using the identifying information from Futaba. You guys play a role in this plan.”

“What’s that?” Makoto asked upon being addressed. ‘She’s really good at taking orders,’ Keiko’s mind wandered. ‘I wonder… Stop.’ She admonished herself. 

“August 21st,” Keiko said. “I need you guys to change Ryou’s heart on that day so he confesses to his crimes the same day my story comes out.”

“Won’t that out you as someone with connections to the Phantom Thieves?”

“I’ll be able to deny it. The story will be published the day before,” Keiko said. “Maybe in the calling card, the Phantom Thieves can mention his known crimes. That puts some distance between us.”

“You might not even need to do that.” Makoto scratched her chin like she had a thought. “I’m overthinking it. Medjed gave us a deadline over public airwaves. The world knows when that deadline is. As an enterprising young mind, it would make the  _ most _ sense for you to release that story on that deadline.”

Keiko blinked the kind of deliberate blink that occasionally happened when she was surprised. “I don’t know why I didn’t think of that in the first place.”

Makoto sighed. “It happens to us a lot. Every time we’re struggling in a palace, the solution is almost always simpler than we’re making it.”

“I have one last part of my plan.” Keiko didn’t like the last part. It was a plan she stole directly from Akechi. “I’m going to reach out to Kasumi’s father and schedule an appearance on his show for August 22nd. If I’m lucky, Ryou confesses while I’m on TV.”

They sat in silence for a bit. 

“What do you think?” Keiko’s voice came out small and scared, probably because she felt small and scared.

Makoto must’ve sensed it, because she adjusted her seat so she could wrap her arms around her girlfriend. “It’s complicated. But it allows you to act while staying safe.”

“I’ve been thinking about this ever since Medjed made their announcement.” Keiko had far too much time on her hands. The plan was her way of coping while Makoto wasn’t around. “I think this provides a way for me to repay you guys for everything you’ve done for me.”

“You don’t repay friends, dear.” Keiko’s insides flooded with warmth as Makoto tightened her hug. 

===

_ Sunday, August 14, Setagaya Journal front page _

**_Breaking news on $80 and no sleep: Keiko Miyahara wanders into story after story_ **

_ By Ichiko Ohya _

_ The Shujin Academy Gazette operates on the $80 per year allotted to it by the Shujin Academy Student Council. _

_ It’s enough for Editor-in-Chief Keiko Miyahara to pay for an Adobe InDesign subscription and nothing more. She operates her “newspaper club” out of a glorified closet. _

_ Miyahara prefers it that way: It gives her something to hold over her best friend’s head. _

_ “I give her guff,” Miyahara said of Shujin’s Student Council President Makoto Niijima. “But in a butterfly effect sort of way, my reporting blowing up is her fault. She reminded me that the internet exists while I was busy being stupid. It’s nice to have somebody who doesn’t get caught up in the craziness.” _

_ Miyahara shared video of embattled Volleyball Coach Suguru Kamoshida threatening three students with expulsion for accusing him of assaulting second-year volleyball player Shiho Suzui. _

_ He confessed to the crime weeks later. She had the scoop on that, too. _

_ “It’s another case of being at the right place at the right time,” Miyahara said. “There wasn’t a reporter in the world that knew he was going to barge into the gym and confess his sins right there.”  _

_ It was the first time that news of the Phantom Thieves truly broke into the mainstream. Miyahara has stepped forward as an expert, of sorts.  _

_ The morning she submitted her story to Aoyama Printers, the company that publishes her papers, they asked how much she wanted to run that story in their paper. _

_ “Their earliest actions largely centered around Shujin,” Miyahara said. “I freaked out when their publisher wanted my front page story for my tiny student newspaper. It was a good and bad freakout.” _

_ Miyahara explained that it was hard to be excited when she felt the sword of Damocles hanging over her head.  _

_ Her stories about Kamoshida weren’t the first time his predatory nature had come to light, but they were the first instances of them making it to the mainstream. _

_ “There’s a trail of expulsions, transfers and unfortunately, deaths that follow anyone who spoke out against Kamoshida,” Miyahara said. “I’d actually like to hear an explanation as to why Kana Hasegawa and Katsuo Suzuki’s obituaries had a moratorium placed on them.” _

_ Suzuki and Hasegawa were Shujin Academy volleyball players thought to have transferred schools in January. Their deaths came to light after Miyahara was able to obtain copies of both obituaries and death certificates.  _

_ “I’m sure this will really get at school administration that I’m saying any of this out loud,” Miyahara said. “They’ll just have to live with how uncomfortable this makes them. You know what else is uncomfortable? Getting raped and knowing you can’t say anything about it. It’s a tragedy that Suzui is considered ‘lucky’ for being the lone surviving victim.” _

_ Miyahara requested a change in subjects before she said anything that got her expelled from school. _

_ “As much as I dislike Shujin’s administration, currently, I’d like to remain in school there,” Miyahara said. “I’d rather not go through the traumatic experience of finding friends that don’t find me to be a nuisance again.” _

_ Miyahara was then asked to give her opinion of the Phantom Thieves. Her answer is provided here in full: _

_ “It’s an interesting question because I can’t be sure they’ve really done anything at all. Let’s take a look at the evidence: Once Katsuo and Kana’s obituaries were released and the video of him threatening students came out, Kamoshida was backed into a corner. There’s a very strong chance he turned himself in and provided a very public, very dramatic confession to try and lessen his sentence. He had to feel the cops closing in. _

_ It’s a similar story with Madarame. It’s been coming out now that he had been running his Sayuri scam for over a decade, and let’s not pretend he didn’t have a nosy teenager living at his house. I can’t put myself in Kitagawa’s shoes because we have certainly led different lives, but I find myself doing stupid things for the sake of rebellion regularly. Who tells a 16-year-old not to do something directly? Teenagers are idiots, myself included. My mom said all children have a deathwish and it’s up to parents to keep it from coming true. I was mad when she told me, but the older I get, the more sense it makes. _

_ Sorry, that was a completely unnecessary tangent. Anyway, where were we? _

_ Right, right. Kaneshiro. That’s the one I have a hard time coming up with an explanation for. The Phantom Thieves are the only plausible explanation, and given how outrageous everything attributed to them so far is, that’s saying something. I bet we hear a simpler explanation some day.  _

_ As far as whether or not they are just, I feel that is not my decision to make. Have the people they supposedly changed the hearts of been in desperate need of it? Absolutely. Do they have the right to play judge, jury and executioner? Well, no. They don’t. But that gets into murky territory. I feel law enforcement is conducting their investigation with the idea that their still unknown suspects are guilty without providing any evidence. Why are they suspects in the first place? With an investigation so public, they owe it to the people of Tokyo to be transparent. I’m concerned at the conspiratorial nature of their so-called findings.” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some notes I made while writing this chapter:
> 
> \- Realistically, a company as large and important as I'm describing disappearing would harm the stock market in such a way that Japan would no longer exist, which I thought about adding as a story arc, but good god, that's complicated as fuck and would get me on an FBI watchlist.
> 
> \- The news not calling rape and sexual crimes what they truly are is a legitimate complaint of my own. Reporting on rapes and sexual assaults is incredibly hard work, admittedly, but often times papers read like they're siding with the abuser. Oftentimes it's because the abuser is somebody who is already in a place of power. Want a good example? Ohio Congressman Jim Jordan. Now, I doubt any of you read fanfiction for the visceral reaction his story should cause.
> 
> And here's another chapter in the books. Things are starting to heat up again. It's been a productive vacation. I've gotten ahead on writing chapters quite a bit. It's so exciting, and there's so much I want to include here but I can't for spoiler purposes.


	14. "Mom!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's only one distinction to make and it's probably the answer to a question nobody asked.
> 
> Important distinction. If a byline says "for (such and such newspaper)", it means it was written by a freelance journalist instead of a salaried reporter. Freelancers get much more freedom when it comes to the kind of stories they write, and they get paid per story, but their income isn't guaranteed. Being a freelance journalist is extremely risky work, especially in America, because it means outright purchasing outrageously expensive health insurance and filing as an independent contractor.

_ Sunday, August 14, Morning _

“There’s a nonzero chance that my sister is going to murder you,” Makoto wore a grim face as she set down her copy of the Setagaya Journal. 

“If you can point out anything I said in that story that was untrue, I will be your slave for the rest of the day.” Keiko regretted the words the second she said them. 

“There is a three-paragraph long statement quoting you directly in which you make up scenarios that might have made the Phantom Thieves’ targets confess without divine interference,” Makoto said, a small gleam in her eyes. 

“I didn’t make them up, I just provided alternative facts-” Keiko’s eyes shifted around the apartment. “Oh. Fiddlesticks.”

The gleam in Makoto’s eyes turned into full-on beaming. “What was it you said? Slave for a day?”

“Um, I’m just going to point out that slavery was made illegal in Japan in-” Keiko tried to stammer out the full sentence but Makoto interrupted her.

“I’m a professional thief. What use have I for laws?” Makoto tilted her head and gave Keiko a crooked grin.

“Oh.” Keiko tried to ignore the growing heat in her cheeks caused by her girlfriend’s tone. 

Makoto stood up from the table and started making her way towards Keiko, who inadvertently ran her eyes up and down her girlfriend’s body. 

It caused Makoto to bust out laughing. “You’re far too easy,” she said. “I thought teasing was your job.”

Keiko tried to ignore the deep-seated attraction that prevented her from speaking. Words left her mouth, but she was immediately embarrassed when they didn’t form anything coherent.

“Wow,” Makoto laughed, and Keiko couldn’t handle that, either. “You’re a mess right now.”

She cleared her throat, although she’d decided against speaking. Instead, she stood up and crashed her lips into Makoto’s. It was clumsy and sloppy and probably a little gross, but they were alone and Keiko had never felt so little need for restraint in her life. Another first for Keiko was enjoying the taste of shitty instant coffee, which Makoto had been drinking before her morning routine was interrupted.

Then the front door’s key lock clicked and they immediately separated, although anyone who saw their red faces and heavy breathing would know exactly what they were up to. 

Sae looked miserable, though. She either noticed and didn’t care, or was too tired to actually check her surroundings. She sighed with relief when she opened the door and saw Makoto had made breakfast, thoroughly ignoring the obvious evidence of her sister and her sister’s  _ very good friend _ getting hot and heavy. Keiko breathed a sigh of relief. Sae noticed, and looked up from the leftover pancakes she’d pilfered from the counter.

“Oh, saw that story this morning,” she said with a mouthful. Sae swallowed. “Good stuff.”

“What?” Keiko tried to play off her surprise and failed. “Makoto thought you’d be offended.”

“I’m not a cop,” Sae said, shrugging. “I assist them in understanding what legal grounds they have for an investigation, and you’re right to be concerned with what they’re trying to pin on the Phantom Thieves. Many of these crimes predate what we know of the Thieves by years and-”

She paused, stopping herself. “I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t be talking about this.”

Keiko nodded. “I understand.”

“I’m just very tired.” She took another bite.

“I can make another batch, sis,” Makoto said. “I was planning on making extras anyway.” She typically tried to cook extras of everything so she could freeze it for use at a later date. Keiko thought it was the smartest thing about Makoto, and she meant it as an absolute compliment. 

“If you could,” Sae said, finishing the cold pancakes still on her plate. She then moved to the couch, taking what was normally Keiko’s spot. “Who opened the shades?”

“Uh, that was me,” Keiko said. “Sorry. My house doesn’t have much of a view. It’s hard for me to be this high up without looking outside.”

“I’m surprised she let you open it,” Sae whisper-shouted, nodding towards Makoto. “She’s terrified of heights.”

Keiko frowned. “I didn’t know that.”

It seemed like Sae dozed off, so Keiko startled when she sat up and asked another question. “I forgot to ask. How’s your head?”

“Makoto tell you about it?” Keiko turned from her seat at the dining room table. Sae nodded. “It’s doing okay. I was rattled for a few days after, but everything seems back to normal for now.”

“I got to meet Keiko’s mom,” Makoto said, placing hot food on the table. Sae grunted as she stood up. “I guess she and mom were good friends.”

“Mom had friends?” Keiko laughed thinking Sae was being sarcastic, but she received a serious look from Makoto that told her she wasn’t. “Would your mother be willing to meet with me?”

“She’d love that,” Keiko replied. “Just a warning though. She’s pretty nosy.”

“So, nosiness  _ is _ hereditary,” Makoto said, snorting. She set more pancakes on Sae’s plate.

===

_ Afternoon _

Keiko could tell meeting her best friend’s eldest daughters thrilled her mother to no end. They’d met up at a diner in Shibuya. Her mother hugged Sae for far too long, and Sae was definitely  _ not _ a hugger.

“You were barely up to my waist the last time I saw you!” she said, breaking the hug. She laughed when she caught Sae’s confused glance. “I’m so sorry. You just got hugged by a strange woman you don’t recognize.”

“Can you apologize to me, too?” Keiko said. “Not for that, but like, for everything else?”

“Hush, you,” her mother said. “Come on! Let’s go sit.”

She led them through the diner to where she had reserved a booth. Keiko reached and squeezed Makoto’s hand before they followed, and she got pulled into a booth by her mother. Keiko preferred to sit next to Makoto, but she supposed that was too much to ask for.

“Order whatever,” her mother said. “I’m paying.”

Sae started to speak but Keiko caught her eye and shook her head. ‘Don’t bother,’ Keiko said. Sae might’ve been scary on occasion, but the only person more stubborn than Keiko was her mother. ‘It might be equal,’ Keiko thought.

“Thank you, Miyahara-san,” Sae said.

“Just Aya, please.” Keiko knew her mother wasn’t a fan of going by her last name in the first place, but she definitely wasn’t going to let one of Ari’s daughters refer to her by her married name.

Sae nodded. “Okay.” 

Keiko could see the wheels turning in her head. Makoto noticed, too, because she tried to keep a conversation going over it.

“It’s been a couple weeks,” Makoto said. “How’ve you been?”

Keiko’s mother shrugged. “Eh. I show up to work, then I come home, then I show up to work, then I come home, and sometimes my daughter appears on the front page of the biggest newspaper in Tokyo and I’m forced to talk to my coworkers about that.” She chuckled. “I suppose that last part’s pretty exciting.”

“I like how little credit I get for bringing honor to our family name,” Keiko said sarcastically.

Her mother laughed. “Yes, because there aren’t literally a million people with the last name Miyahara.”

“And that’s just in Tokyo,” Keiko shrugged. “It’s good for remaining incognito.”

“I thought that’s what the glasses were for,” Makoto joined in. “They don’t work, by the way. You’re still adorable.”

“Makoto!” Keiko blushed, then realized it was a fairly innocuous compliment that was made more suspicious by her reaction. 

Keiko’s mother eyed both of them as if looking for clarification. ‘Does Sae know or not?’ Keiko assumed that’s what her mother’s eyes were asking. She covertly shook her head. Sae didn’t seem to be paying too much attention, opting to stare off into space. She may have been too tired to really hold a conversation, and she ordered a coffee when the waitress came by.

“Coffee for all of us, actually,” her mother said. “I’m a bit hungover.”

“Mom!” Keiko rolled her eyes. 

That did make Sae laugh, though, which surprised Keiko. She assumed Sae was extremely high strung. 

“I’m surprised your daughter isn’t,” she said, giving Keiko a knowing glance.

Keiko didn’t respond and tried to warn Makoto with her eyes. Makoto didn’t catch the warning.

“What do you mean, Sis?”

“You two have been drinking my whiskey.” Sae didn’t sound angry. If Keiko had to guess, Sae had successfully read the room.

The only question in Keiko’s mind was how her mom would react. She tried to avoid chewing her nails and failed.

“Ha!” Keiko’s mom laughed, and Keiko and Makoto gave matching sighs of relief. “Your mother and I did that once-” She paused. “Erm. Sorry. I don’t know if you guys talk about her or-”

Sae cut her off. “Not really, but that’s part of why I wanted to meet up. I really know nothing about her, and Makoto barely remembers her.”

Keiko’s mother nodded. “It’s probably easier for you to remember your father, especially since Makoto acts just like him.”

“It’s like he never left,” Sae laughed. “With everything going on at Shujin, I was surprised she didn’t just take it into her own hands.”

Keiko snorted as their waitress came back with their coffee. They ordered pie instead of food. Sae had just eaten and Keiko’s mother wasn’t much of a lunch person. If she was hungover, she probably wouldn’t be able to keep anything substantial down. 

Makoto squirmed uncomfortably in her chair as the conversation steered towards her. Keiko’s mom noticed, and grinned.

“I think Makoto’s had enough,” she said. “Besides, you came here to talk about your mother, not make fun of your sister.”

“That’s true,” Sae said with a small smile. “We can do more of that after we discuss our mother. They haven’t gotten out of explaining why some of my whiskey was missing.”

“Damn it,” Keiko cursed. 

Aya sighed. “Your mother and I were inseparable. She was the smart one.”

“Obviously,” Keiko snorted.

“Hush.” Her mother rolled her eyes. “I legitimately wouldn’t have graduated high school without her. I was too busy chasing boys.”

Keiko raised an eyebrow. “Were you really that boy crazy?”

“Still am,” she shrugged. “So is your father, for that matter.”

“Okay, is this really the time-” 

Keiko’s further questioning got interrupted. “Anyway! Your mother and I made a deal. I teach her how to deal with boys, she teaches me how to be a nerd.”

“You mean study,” Sae corrected.

Aya rolled her eyes. “Sure. Nerd.” 

Keiko cringed, but Sae took it in stride. 

“Once she met your father, we drifted apart.” She sighed. “I’m not the best with children, so once you came along, she made the decision it was probably best to put some distance between us.”

“I’m so sorry-”

Aya interrupted Sae’s apology. “She made the right choice. I still don’t know what to do with a kid.”

“It’s true,” Keiko shrugged. 

“Wouldn’t have had to, if your mother hadn’t-” She caught herself and cringed. 

“If their mother hadn’t done what?” Keiko raised an eyebrow.

“Uh, Keiko, maybe we shouldn’t-”

“Mako, I’m just going to let her finish her sentence,” Keiko said in a tense tone. 

“Uh, so-” Keiko’s mother stammered. “I actually didn’t want kids. I was planning on terminating the pregnancy, but when Ari found out I was pregnant, she was  _ so _ excited. It was the first real conversation we had in years. So, I thought I’d keep the baby.”

“You only had me to get your friend back?!”

“Keiko!” Makoto whisper-shouted. “We’re in public.”

“Right,” Keiko sighed. “That’s just-”

“Really shitty. I know.” Aya shrugged. “And then we had a huge fight right before you were born because, well, I’d like to say there was a good reason. I blame pregnancy hormones.”

“I remember that,” Sae said. “I told mom I’d have dad arrest you for being so mean.”

“You should have,” Aya laughed. “I was pretty broke at the time and having a baby in prison is free.”

“Jesus christ, mom,” Keiko said. “Wait. Is dad not my real dad?”

“You thought he was your real dad?” She raised an eyebrow. “I told you years ago!”

“Like, how many years ago?” 

“12? Something like that?” She shrugged. “You didn’t seem to care.”

“Mom.” Keiko was flabbergasted that her mother could just keep dropping news on her like this. “I was three 12 years ago.”

“You could talk, though. I assumed you’d remember!” Aya finished her coffee as a waitress walked by. 

Sae and Makoto looked at each other awkwardly.

“Anyway,” Aya cleared her throat. “We fought because your mother kept telling me how to raise my yet-to-be-born daughter. She wanted me to push Keiko to start school a year earlier so you two could be in the same class and be ‘besties’ like we were.”

“Oh, god,” Makoto laughed. “Mom was the kind of person to say ‘besties?’”

“She was, and it was fucking lame.” Aya seemed salty about it still. 

“What was mom like before she had kids?” Sae asked. She may have been getting impatient with the pregnancy talk. Keiko felt the same way.

“She was a giant dork, but with some help, I had her at least functioning like your typical college student.” She sighed dreamily. “Your father and mother were adorable together. I haven’t seen anyone that cute since. Well,” She shrugged. “I guess there are two  _ very good friends _ who might give them a run for their money but I shouldn’t get off-topic.”

Keiko’s eyes bugged. It made her mother laugh. 

“For the record, I’m extremely happy she talked me into having a kid, and I’m not just saying that cuz she’s sitting next to me.” Then she looked at Makoto. “It’s a shame I won’t be getting grandkids, though.”

“Mom!” shouted a mortified Keiko.

Sae was completely oblivious.

===

_ Evening _

“You picked a hell of a time to tell me you had to be convinced to go through with having a kid,” Keiko said. It was the first words she spoke to her mother after they returned home. Her father was upstairs, supposedly sleeping off a hangover, or maybe soothing a gaping asshole or whatever it was gay men did. 

“It just kind of slipped out,” Aya replied, shrugging. “I’m sorry.”

“I should have known better than to trust you to behave for one afternoon,” Keiko said. “You know how hard it is to find out you aren’t wanted?”

“You  _ are _ wanted, Keiko,” her mother pleaded. “I promise. What was I suppose to say? Why would anyone openly tell their kid they were an unplanned pregnancy?“

“Being unplanned is different from what you’re saying,” Keiko raised her voice. “A family can still be happy with a child they didn’t plan for. But you didn’t even want me, so you went right on living your life.” The years of neglect now made sense to Keiko. “I always thought you were just a shitty parent. I didn’t realize the neglect was on purpose.”

She stormed upstairs. Her mother said something. Keiko didn’t listen.

===

_ Wednesday, August 17, Evening _

Keiko left her home Monday with no intention of going back. Sae had given her the okay to stay until her mother figured out how to make things right. Makoto did her best to cheer Keiko up, but their time together mostly consisted of Keiko depression napping in between researching her story on Ryou. Futaba had been able to provide more documentation than necessary for a news story, which included some strange donations to the Okumura Foundation. Keiko didn’t even know Okumura’s had a foundation. The donations to American politicians were just as strange, but Keiko also assumed she didn’t know enough about global politics to dip her toes into that mess. 

The story was mostly written by Wednesday, which happened to be a night Sae was able to come home on time. She wasn’t even all that tired, it seemed. She had a bright smile on her face when she walked through the door.

Keiko squeaked when Sae walked through the door. She was in the midst of revising the story before she submitted it to Ohya’s publisher. They’d already negotiated rights to the story and Keiko refused to budge. It had to be run on Monday. 

Makoto wasn’t home yet. They’d delivered Futaba’s calling card yesterday, meaning the Phantom Thieves were currently in massive amounts of danger at the hands of what was almost definitely a giant depression monster. ‘What would a depression monster look like?’ Keiko thought. ‘It’s probably different for everyone.’ Her own, she thought, was probably some kind of giant behemoth that looked like mommy issues or something. 

“Hi, Keiko,” Sae greeted, setting her purse down on the kitchen table. She walked to the bathroom and came out fresh faced, wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt, which Keiko normally wouldn’t pay attention to but she didn’t realize Sae was capable of wearing normal clothes. “Uh, you okay?”

“Huh?” Keiko shook her head. “Sorry. I’ve just never seen you dressed so casually.”

“Do you think I sit at home in full make-up and dress clothes?”

“Uh, are you going to be mad if I say yes?”

Sae laughed. “You’ve probably never actually seen me on a day off. I haven’t gotten many of them recently.”

“When’s the last time you got off work on time?”

“I think Makoto was in middle school.” Keiko thought Sae was being sarcastic but she gave Keiko a look when she laughed. “I’m being serious.”

“Christ.” Keiko sighed. “I guess that’s adulthood, though.”

“It’s not that way for everyone.” Sae took a seat on the couch and Keiko was struck by just how ridiculously attractive both Sae and Makoto were. There was something about it that seemed effortless, and Keiko thought it was some kind of miracle her mother was straight if they both took after their mother. “Just people like us.”

That shook Keiko out of her thoughts. “Like us?”

“Yes,” Sae nodded. “I can tell. You and Makoto are both the same in that regard. You’ll get caught up in something that’s more important than actually living your life. Then you’ll look up and realize how much you’ve missed.”

Keiko had never felt so seen in her entire life. She knew exactly what Sae was talking about.

“How long have you and Makoto been dating?”

‘Or not.’

“What?” Keiko and Makoto had been working out how to break the news to Sae. She’d seemed so oblivious to them sneaking around that Keiko wondered if they slipped up. “How did you-”

“I got home from work pretty late Monday night.” Sae chuckled. “You were both asleep, cuddled on the couch.”

“Eep.” Keiko remembered falling asleep on the couch that night. They moved to Makoto’s bed in the middle of the night.

“How long have you been together?” Sae blew right through Keiko’s obvious awkward reaction.

“June 21,” Keiko said without missing a beat. “Happiest day of my life, so far.”

“That’s good to hear.” Sae nodded. “Was that the same night you guys snuck into the liquor?”

“No,” Keiko replied as honestly as she could. “That happened before either of us knew anything.”

“Ah. I assumed alcohol helped it along.”

Alcohol  _ had _ helped it along by making things like little unnecessary touches more noticeable, but neither of them acted on that night.

“Have you guys, uh, done-”

“No,” Keiko interrupted her. “You don’t have to worry about that.”

“Well, I know I don’t have to worry about anyone getting pregnant or whatever,” Sae said with a laugh. “But I’d prefer that kind of thing not happen when I’m home. If it happens here at all, you’re both to make sure you-” She paused to think of a proper word. “Clean up after yourselves.”

Keiko never imagined having this conversation with Sae Niijima ever. “I can’t believe you’re okay with this.”

Sae shrugged. “What am I supposed to say? ‘Hey, person that is so obviously in love with my sister! Stop making her happy!’” Her mock yelling voice was still quite intimidating. “I’m surprised I didn’t notice sooner. You two really aren’t subtle.”

“We try!”

Sae tutted. “Barely. Do I need to teach you how to cover up a hickey?” She pointed to a spot on her neck. Keiko ran a hand over a mark Makoto left earlier that day when things started to get heavy again. 

“Uh. I’ll be more discreet.”

“I do appreciate you not lying to me,” Sae chuckled. “Most people would have said ‘it won’t happen again.’”

They sat in silence for a short while.

“Aren’t you going to give me the ‘break my sister’s heart and I’ll murder you’ speech?”

“Oh, she’s more than capable of doing that by herself,” Sae chuckled. 

“Fair point.” ‘Why is every new friend I make terrifying?’ “Any plans tonight?”

Sae shrugged. “Makoto taped Featherman-” she studdered, “erm. I mean, Makoto taped a documentary I was going to catch up on-”

Keiko suppressed a giggle. “I never thought you’d be a sentai kind of person.”

“You will tell nobody.” Sae said.

Makoto wouldn’t be back for some time, and Keiko had a deadline to hit. “Well, it’s a shame I know your secret. It’ll be front page when we go back to school in September. Unless you want to barter.”

“Are you blackmailing me?”

“I just need a second set of eyes on this story before it gets sent out.”

“You could have asked me to look at it without blackmailing me,” Sae said in a terse tone. Keiko would have been intimidating, but she recognized the tone as a fake-angry one that Makoto used all the time.

“Where’s the fun in that? You’ll want the jump on this story, anyway.” Keiko stood up from her seat at the kitchen table and tossed her notebook to Sae. “You get to see the hardcopy. Even  _ Makoto _ doesn’t get to see the hardcopy.”

Sae rolled her eyes. “I’m honored.” Then she looked at the headline. “Holy shit.”

**Ryou Internet Security caught selling user data, framing competitors**

“I have just one condition,” Keiko said. “Fulfill it, and I’ll send all the proof directly to you. Goro Akechi learns of this at the exact same moment the rest of Japan does.”

“Of course.” Sae nodded. “Is this just because of your rivalry, or-”

“It’s more than that, Sae. But I don’t want to throw out claims unless I can back them up.” Keiko felt she was getting dangerously close to confiding in Sae her secret suspicion that Akechi was behind the mental shutdowns. “But trust him only as far as you must for work. I don’t want him catching on to my train of thought.”

“Understood.” Sae said. “But if it involves getting an arrest and a prosecution, I won’t be able to hold up the deal.”

“I know,” Keiko said. “I’m not asking you to lie. I’m asking you to avoid saying anything. They’re both dishonest, but they aren’t the same thing.”

“I can do that.”

“Also, I want a key to the city when you guys arrest Ryou.”

Sae stammered. “I don’t think I can-”

“I’m kidding, but you should have seen your face.”

“Dear lord,” Sae said, exasperated. “You know who you’re acting like right now?”

“If you say my mom, I’m going to drink the rest of your whiskey.”

“Not helping your case, Keiko,” Sae said, turning back to the article. “I’ll read this, and I’ll tell you what I think. I’ll uphold my end of our deal.”

**Ryou Internet Security caught selling user data, framing competitors disguised as Medjed**

_ By Keiko Miyahara for the Setagaya Journal _

_ The Medjed Menace is little more than Kazou Ryou’s retribution. _

_ Documents provided by an unidentified source claiming to be the original Medjed have outlined a series of data leaks relating to Ryou Internet Security’s market opponents. They have also indicated Ryou’s involvement in planning an attack on the Phantom Thieves, who are widely considered to be either Satan himself, or the modern day incarnation of Robin Hood, depending who is answering the question.  _

_ “The Phantom Thieves must be taken care of at once,” reads an email from Ryou to a source within the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. “Our plans cannot come to fruition with these vigilantes roaming our streets.” _

_ The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department did not return multiple requests for comment. _

_ The question behind this particular email is who exactly Ryou means by “our.” _

_ The documents obtained outline a number of financial contributions Ryou has made to numerous causes, including Kunikazu Okumura’s foundation, which was recently greenlit as a tax-exempt charitable donation despite no further information being made available online or elsewhere. The National Tax Agency did not return requests for documentation, although they are required by the Information Disclosure Law to respond. This bill passed with full support from multiple political parties in 2001.  _

_ Ryou donated 5.68 million yen to the Okumura Foundation on April 3rd of this year, the same day American entrepreneur and social media innovator Wendell Olshansky was pronounced dead of an overdose. Months prior, Ryou donated a whopping 19.2 million yen to the campaign of Prime Minister candidate Masayoshi Shido. That same day, his primary competitor, TEKO Network Enterprises CEO Joseph Naganaka died of a heart attack at the age of 31. Naganaka was well-known as one of the most ardent fighters of Japan’s obesity epidemic. Detailed below is a list of donations made to various Shido and Okumura-linked foundations and the connected deaths of Ryou’s opponents- _

Sae stopped reading.

“Keiko.” 

Keiko jolted in her seat at Sae’s dire tone.

“Is this the only copy of the story?”

“I always keep backups,” Keiko said. “Why?”

“We’re going to your house, and you’re grabbing every copy of this story, and we’re going to burn it.” Sae looked down at the paper in disbelief. “Then we will come back here and drink until we both forget every little thing in this story.”

Keiko glared at her in disbelief. “What? We can’t-”

“Is writing this story more important than being alive come Tuesday morning?”

Keiko looked down at the floor. “Yes.”

“It’s not.” Sae shook her head. “I can’t let you go through with this.”

“Why?”

“I explicitly asked you to avoid reporting any further on the mental shutdowns,” Sae said, sternly. “You were to avoid this topic at all costs, and you continued to meddle. It’s best for you, me, my sister and every single person you have ever come into contact with if we shut this story down right now.” 

“I don’t understand-”

“You’re right. You don’t get it, and you shouldn’t. I’m actually relieved you don’t.” Sae stood up and started putting on her shoes. “Come on. We’re going to grab those extra copies.” 

“Do you seriously think I made all of this up? I would never do that.” Keiko pleaded. She worked so hard on every aspect of that article.

Sae shook her head. “Nope. I believe every single word of it. That’s why we’re burning it.”

“Sae, these people need to be taken down.” 

“Not at the cost of your life,” Sae said. “Or my sister’s life.”

Keiko was almost touched that Sae was this concerned for her.

“Now, come on. We’ll get coffee and curry and pretend I  _ didn’t _ just read something that will land all of us in a watery grave.”

The ride to Yongen-Jaya was silent until they were almost there.

“Sae, I need something in return if we’re seriously shutting this story down.” Keiko hated playing the money card, but she had plans for that money.

“I will do literally anything else.” Sae’s tone reminded Keiko of herself after Makoto- it hit her. ‘Is it really  _ that _ serious?’

“I still want to take them down. I’m willing to do it your way.” Keiko tried to ignore Sae’s glare. “I think we have enough to do it your way.”

“Nobody except me knows?”

“I  _ have _ to tell Makoto. She’s been listening to me talk about this story for months,” plus, Keiko thought, the Phantom Thieves would be pretty upset if she took them out of the loop.

“Two can keep a secret if-   
“One is dead. I know the drill,” Keiko said. “You’re asking me to lie to your sister, who I just so happen to be just a little bit more beholden to.”

Sae sighed. “Fine.”

“I’m still turning in a story on Ryou being Medjed,” Keiko said.

She didn’t meet Sae’s eyes.“That’s not part of our deal.”

“Him being Medjed should be enough to take him down and it won’t draw any more eyes to me than usual,” Keiko argued. “We’ll be safe.”

“Fine.” Sae said. “I’m sure there’s some kind of contract you have to fulfill anyway.”

“That would be correct,” Keiko said. “I’m only on the hook for a story about Ryou and Medjed. The rest of the stuff was just my findings. I can leave them out until I have better confirmation.”

They exited the car and went into LeBlanc. Sae agreed to her terms.

Sojiro noticed something off almost immediately. He completely ignored Sae’s presence. 

“What’s wrong, kid?” He chuckled a little. “You’ve been here for three whole minutes. You haven’t called me old or called me a grouch yet.”

“Oh, just-” Keiko nodded towards Sae, intending a completely different meaning than Sojiro picked up.

“You get arrested?” Sojiro questioned.

Sae rolled her eyes. “I’m a prosecutor, not a cop. They’re completely different things.”

“Sure,” Sojiro said. “Doesn’t mean I’m happy to see you come through my door.”

“Understandably,” Sae said solemnly. “I’m just here as a customer, today.”

“Come here as a customer more often,” Sojiro grinned, then leaned towards Keiko and spoke quietly. “Wouldn’t mind seein’ her in street clothes more often.” 

Keiko scoffed, earning a look from Sae. She didn’t hear Sojiro’s quip. 

They finished their food and Keiko did as she was told, partially. When she got to her house, she grabbed every copy of the story except one. She was sure she’d be writing it again later. Her reason for keeping a copy wasn’t nefarious, and it stayed in a lockbox under her bed. Nobody would find it.

Makoto was sitting on the sofa looking a satisfied sort of tired that Keiko normally associated with a long makeout session. 

“How was your day?” Keiko asked.

“It went well.” Makoto nodded. “It feels like summer is finally starting.”

“Does that mean you stop ignoring me?” Keiko sat next to her on the couch, placing a hand on her thigh. 

“Keiko, Sae’s  _ home,” _ she said, warning her. 

_ “Sae knows,” _ Keiko whispered. “She doesn’t care.” 

“You two want a drink? I promised Keiko we could try drinking together tonight,” Sae said, interrupting their quiet conversation. Keiko pulled her hand away when Makoto jumped.

“Sis? Are you sure?”

Sae sighed. “I owe it to her. I kind of made her throw out half her story at the last second.”

“You did what?”

Keiko and Sae spent the next hour sharing their afternoon together with Makoto over Jack and Cokes. Sae was a surprisingly animated and happy drunk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Sae in this chapter and I hate Keiko's mother. Not like, the character. Keiko's mom is just awful in very inconsequential ways. 
> 
> Sae has several lines in this chapter that make me laugh very hard, to a point where I find it hard to believe that I wrote them.


	15. The Fall of Medjed

_ Monday, August 22, Morning _

“How’s Sumi doing?” Keiko sat in front of Shinichi Yoshizawa for their pre-show interview. He’d been pacing around the studio looking nervous all morning. 

“I wish she was doing better,” he said, trying to return a friendly smile. He looked markedly unhappy, though. “She’s been stuck in this slump that she just can’t get out of”

Keiko nodded, feeling slightly guilty. “I promised to help her with that and then I passed out. She, uh, isn’t returning my texts.”

“She thinks something she said made you pass out,” Shinichi confessed. “I don’t know where she gets that idea from.”

“How would that even work? I get lightheaded pretty easily,” Keiko truly did have a history of being sensitive to certain motions and smells. “That’s the first time I’ve ever passed out like that, but it’s seriously not all that unusual. I’m going to the doctor for it, now, so I’m actually getting help.”

“I’m glad to hear you’re getting help,” Shinichi said with a smile. “I’ll be sure to tell her.”

“Just make sure she knows it’s not her fault that I don’t take care of myself,” Keiko said, then chuckled. “It’s probably a side effect from all the coffee I drink.”

His smile seemed a little happier this time. Kasumi-talk always brightened him. It warmed Keiko’s heart. ‘I wonder if my dad ever feels that way-’ she tried to shake the thought away. ‘He’s not my dad, I guess.’

“Is something wrong?” Keiko asked.

“I’m just concerned about today’s show,” he sighed. “A station exec told me there might be some big news that preempts part of our show.”

‘Ah, yes. All according to plan.’ Keiko thought, then chuckled to herself, thinking of a meme she sent Makoto earlier that morning. They were talking about their trip to the beach next week, and how Makoto wouldn’t have a choice but to wear a bathing suit. It got turned around on Keiko because she was always the more conservative dresser, and Makoto convinced Ann that Keiko needed to wear a bikini if Futaba was going to wear one. As nervous as she was, she was pretty excited to show off. She’d been busting her ass training with Makoto and it showed.

“I know you’re here to talk about the story you published yesterday, but I didn’t want to bombard you immediately after the story changes,” Shinichi said. 

Keiko gave him a patronizing look. “That’s sweet, but I’m nearly 100% sure I know everything he’s going to confess to, today.”

Shinichi raised an eyebrow. “Seriously?”

Keiko nodded. “The story had many details that I couldn’t get definite confirmation on. I had to omit some things based on what I could prove and for my own personal safety.”

Shinichi nodded. “If you’re okay to stick around, I’ll run it past the producers. They’ll be happy.”

At exactly 10 a.m., Kazou Ryou’s press conference interrupted Shinichi’s introduction. They allowed Keiko to stay in the green room with a television. It was then that Keiko realized she didn’t have much of an idea what Ryou looked like. It wasn’t until she saw the previous morning’s paper that she saw the photo they used, but he looked much different this morning. He was a short, chubby, tearful man, who removed his glasses to wipe tears between every few words. He was younger than she thought, although crying had the effect of making some people look younger. She felt a rush seeing him cry, probably from the knowledge that both herself and Makoto played a hand in bringing him to his knees. ‘I have developed a complex.’

The pathetic man steeled himself before he spoke.

“I have committed crimes against my country and against my very own industry and used my position of power to leverage control over the markets. Not only is this illegal, but it has also hampered Japan’s technological development compared to the rest of the world. When innovators from other markets attempted to encroach on mine, I ordered them killed. I also orchestrated the Medjed attacks against the Phantom Thieves, provoking vigilantism in a way that has destabilized my nation’s government. I would like to indulge my activities further, but I have been asked in the name of justice to omit explanations of the extent of my crimes in public. It should be known that I am cooperating with an SIU investigation to the fullest extent I can. The investigation will include audits of my businesses and investigation into donations I have made to the Okumura Foundation and Masayoshi Shido’s campaign to become the next Prime Minister.”

The press in the room had a million questions, but he was escorted away by a short, balding, glasses-clad man with a crow’s nose and Sae Niijima. Goro Akechi followed.

‘Well, at least I know I don’t have to worry about arguing with Akechi on this broadcast,’ Keiko said. The broadcast cut back to Shinichi’s show, where he performed an abbreviated intro before introducing Keiko.

“It’s amazing how much can change in just a day, but we have the woman who just published her story documenting Kazou Ryou’s recent activity as an anti-Phantom Thief vigilante, major political donor, and disruptive force in Japan’s technology market. Introducing Shujin Academy second-year Keiko Miyahara!”

Shinichi sure seemed less nervous once the cameras were on, Keiko thought. She was smart this time, wearing the same grey dress that Ohya made her wear when she was trying to get a story out of Yusuke. It breathed much better under the camera lights than her school uniform. 

“Welcome, Keiko-chan,” Shinichi said, a big happy Hollywood-smile on his face. “I know you mentioned you’d like to get right into it, but can I just say that you look absolutely stunning?”

She blushed and tried to gather herself. “Thank you. I didn’t have the option of wearing my school uniform and this is the only dress I own.”

“Now, I’m sure there’s a story behind that, but given the news that just broke, I’m sure you already have some things you’d like people to hear,” Shinichi said. Keiko noticed how much more natural his facial expression seemed with her. He didn’t come off as acting.

Keiko chuckled lightly then sighed. “Oh, there are a lot of things that I’d like to say. I’m actually surprised I wasn’t part of Ryou’s confession.”

“What beef could he have had with you?” Shinichi asked, eyebrows raised.

“When the news about Suguru Kamoshida first broke, I received multiple angry emails threatening lawsuits from what we initially thought was a throwaway email address,” Keiko said. “They weren’t the kind of emails one would normally receive from a lawyer, and it turned out the email had been used before for other purposes, and with the help of a friend who is far more technologically inclined than I, we were able to track the email address to Medjed. From there, we were able to deduce; to use my good friend Akechi’s favorite word; that the account was a burner belonging to Ryou-san. That’s actually how I obtained the data I used in my expose.”

“That’s extremely impressive,” Shinichi said. “Why would he even need a burner account?”

Keiko sighed. “I’m really not comfortable speaking on what he was using the account for. Mind you, none of the other things he was using it for was illegal, per se. Just disturbing.”

“Was it-”

“Porn, Shinichi,” Keiko huffed. “It was a lot of porn.”

He had to pause to let the crowd laugh, and Keiko had to join because Shinichi looked like he was getting reamed by his producers through the earpiece. “I-” He stammered a small amount. Keiko took pride in getting him so off guard. “I don’t know what to say to that.”

“Me neither. We should talk about literally anything else,” Keiko lightly chuckled. “This is a family show.”

“That’s true,” Shinichi’s on-camera smile was back. “I remember how difficult it was for you to keep from swearing that first time.”

“You use ‘was’ like I still don’t have trouble not swearing on live television,” Keiko shrugged. “We’ve had enough scandal for one day, though.”

“We can get back on topic,” Shinichi said, holding a finger to his ear like his producer may have been telling him he had to get back on topic. “You told me beforehand you had a bit of an idea that Ryou would confess today. Why?”

“That’s easy,” Keiko shrugged and grinned. “I took a gamble and bet on the Phantom Thieves. My real goal was to get to him before they did, and I lost.”

Shinichi looked dumbstruck. “You have a different definition of losing than I do.”

“Well, it’s good business sense to drop the story on the same day as the so-called Cleanse, and documentation of his actions were much easier to track.” 

“How is an internet security expert easier to track?”

“He made a lot of donations that require public disclosure. Campaign finance law exists for this very reason.” Keiko had to give herself a crash-course in the law to know if the story was even legal to publish. “Believe it or not, there’s not much of a paper trail following the Phantom Thieves, and campaign finance law has teeth. It may have happened before I was born, but we all remember what happened to Toranosuke Yoshida.”

“There’s not a person in Tokyo who doesn’t know of No Good Tora,” Shinichi chuckled and shifted gears. “I noticed you left any mention of the Okumura and Shido connections out of your version of the story, which is something Ryou confessed to this morning.”

Keiko sighed. “I suppose if I waited to print the story, I would have had concrete confirmation of the connection. All I had until this morning was a hunch, and even if you go back and watch Ryou’s confession, he doesn’t explain  _ why _ he made the donations.”

“Do you know why?” Shinichi asked with a raised eyebrow.

Keiko chewed the inside of her lip. “The connection seems obvious, but I’ll either get sued into oblivion or murdered for making it in public, so I’m going to leave that conversation off-the-air. As much as it pains me to say this, I’m thrilled to see that Akechi is on the case. I think he’ll be able to draw the same conclusions I have.”

“Wow!” Shinichi said. “It’s surprising to hear you praise the Detective Prince.”

“Eh,” Keiko shrugged. “Just because we don’t agree on everything doesn’t mean he’s a bad person.” ‘Actually, he might be a horrifically evil person. I just don’t have proof yet.’ “His success, in this case, means a safer Japan. What kind of person would I be if I wished against that?”

“Does that mean you’ve turned around in your opinion on the Phantom Thieves?”

Keiko took a second or two to think through her answer.

“We have proof of Ryou’s misdeeds,” Keiko said. “Everyone they’ve outed as a target has come forward as some form of criminal. Charges have been pressed against everyone who has come forward, therefore, some portion of the police and prosecutor’s office must agree with me. If they truly thought the Phantom Thieves’ existence were grave indictments on our society, they wouldn’t be pressing charges against their so-called victims.”

“That doesn’t answer the question,” Shinichi said, an eyebrow raised. It actually felt like a real follow up, Keiko thought. She didn’t mind having her feet held to the fire.

“While it won’t affect my reporting in any way, I do believe the Phantom Thieves are just.” She tried to speak emphatically, mostly just to avoid sounding nervous. “However, that is my own personal judgment, and I’m not exactly some paragon of virtue. Believe what your eyes tell you. I’ve yet to see any Thieves-related action that harmed anyone except those desperately clutching to power.”

“That’s all the time we have for today, unfortunately,” Shinichi said. “I could probably listen to you all day.”

“Don’t get into that habit,” Keiko laughed. “The old man that owns the coffee shop near my house thought the same thing and now he can’t get rid of me.”

“Keiko Miyahara, everybody,” Shinichi said, signing off.

===

_ Afternoon _

**Alibaba:** help

**SendNews:** what happened?

**Alibaba:** Ren is trying to drag me out of my comfort zone

**SendNews:** Futaba, you can’t stay inside forever

**Alibaba:** but my stuff is here

**Alibaba:** and my computer

**SendNews:** what if I came and got you?

**Alibaba:** plz

**Alibaba:** at LeBlanc. 

**SendNews:** Is Makoto there?

**Alibaba:** yea but she can’t come

**SendNews:** Why not?

**Alibaba:** because

**SendNews:** I’m not doing this without Makoto

**Alibaba:** fine, but I get to watch

**SendNews:** watch what?

**Alibaba:** …

**SendNews:** no. bad futaba

Keiko sighed. She was in her comfy spot, laying back on the couch at Makoto’s, her head resting in her girlfriend’s lap. Makoto’s eyes were glued to the TV in hopes of hearing more of the aftermath from Ryou’s confession. They heard nothing they didn’t already know.

“We have to get up.” Keiko groaned.

“Why?” The question came from Makoto in a flat tone. She didn’t feel like moving, either.

“I told Futaba we’d save her from Ren dragging her out of her comfort zone.” Keiko yawned through half the sentence.

Makoto scoffed. “Does she know you’re worse than Ren in literally every way?”

Keiko shrugged. “She should. She does know me better than the rest of you, though.”

“That’s true,” Makoto said with a nod.

Neither of them made a move to stand up. Instead, Keiko rolled onto her side, facing inward, burying her face in Makoto’s lap. “It’s naptime.”

Makoto groaned. “You  _ just _ said we need to go see Futaba.”

“Yeah. I’m regretting it.” Keiko’s words muffled against Makoto.

“Why?”

Keiko took a deep breath. “You smell nice.”

“Is that really why?” Makoto raised an eyebrow.

“I had a long day, okay?” Makoto could hear the pout in Keiko’s voice. “Can’t I just enjoy this one thing before some titan of industry sends a metaphysical assassin after my brain?”

“You did a good job on TV today given the circumstances,” Makoto said in a soft voice. “I’m proud of you.” Her tone changed a little. “Now get your face out of my lap, you pervert.”

Keiko startled and fell off the couch. “That wasn’t-”

“‘You smell nice,’” Makoto mocked Keiko, rolling her eyes. “Because you’re face first in my-”

“It really did smell nice, though!” Keiko said, and the two couldn’t control the laughter any longer.

The laughter mostly continued on their way to Sojiro’s house. Makoto made a show of not wanting to walk in front of Keiko the entire trip because she “couldn’t be trusted to keep her thoughts pure.” Keiko was pretty sure Makoto wasn’t being sarcastic the first time she said it, but Keiko unashamed admission that she was right turned their walk to Shibuya Station, and then Sojiro’s, into a game of reverse leapfrog, where Makoto would purposely slow down so Keiko was in front of her, then Keiko would do the same.

It was actually pretty exhausting.

Futaba answered on the first knock and pulled Keiko in by the wrist. She nearly slammed the door in Makoto’s face. Makoto caught it, luckily, and followed them into Futaba’s room.

“Were you followed?”

“What?”

“Huh?” Futaba pushed her glasses up. “Dunno. That just felt like something people say.”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “People conducting a drug deal, maybe.”

Futaba raised an eyebrow. “Hey, if you don’t know about my business you better keep your distance.”

“Futaba! Are you really selling drugs?” Makoto asked, dumbfounded.

“No,” Futaba giggled. “Should see your face, though.”

Keiko and Futaba both thought this was hilarious, although Keiko knew the frustrated look on her girlfriend’s face well enough to not push any further. “How’ve you been since, well, you know?”

Futaba turned around to face her computer and Keiko tried to peer over her shoulder. The back of her chair obscured most of the view, but it looked like a stereotypical movie-hacker green-text-on-black-screen that Keiko couldn’t think was actually functional. “I’ve been much better,” Futaba said. “The hallucinations are gone, at least.”

“You still seem scared shitless of the outside world.” Keiko looked around the room. It appeared in much better shape than the last time she saw it. The wood floors were actually visible, although she imagined if any of them moved too quickly, thick layers of dust on the less used furniture would create a whirlwind. 

“So do you,” Futaba shrugged. “I’m just smart enough to stay indoors.”

“Futaba, you know you can’t just sit inside all day,” Makoto said. “It’ll be good for you to get out.”

Keiko interrupted Futaba’s protest. “As much as it probably sucks for you, Makoto’s right.”

“Betrayal!” Futaba erupted, then she slouched in her chair. 

Keiko made an attempt to comfort her by rubbing her back, which Futaba seemed receptive to. “Look, Futaba,” Keiko sighed. “You even letting us in your room is a good first step.”

She could feel Futaba take a deep breath. “Right. I want to get better.”

“Do you think you could try leaving your room?”

Futaba shook her head but then nodded before Keiko could try and convince her any further. “I remember riding the trains with mom. She would always tell me how important computers were to moving people around.”

“So, we can make a field trip?” Keiko looked to Makoto, who seemed to agree. “We can go to Makoto’s, just to get you out of the house.”

“Is that okay?” Futaba turned around, Keiko secretly cursing her in jealousy. She had a spinny chair.

Makoto smiled and nodded. “Sis won’t be home until late, so you can even stay over if you have to.”

“I haven’t had a sleepover since I was little.”

“Well, that’s a big first step-” Keiko was about to tell her it was okay if she didn’t want to, but Futaba bolted out of her chair and grabbed a bag, filling it with clothes and what looked like junk. “Wait. You’re not bugging Makoto’s apartment.”

“Buzzkill.” Futaba started emptying a few things out of her bag. 

Keiko giggled. “That’s usually Makoto’s job. She’s rubbing off on me.”

Traveling through Yongen-Jaya with Futaba was simple, as though she’d done it many times. When Keiko asked, Futaba confessed to having LeBlanc bugged, meaning she knew  _ everything, _ more than Keiko did. 

“It’s how I found out if there were other kids in the neighborhood,” Futaba said. “Your dad was in and mentioned you to Sojiro. All I had was a first name, but I cross-referenced it with your father’s most-likely identity, located your home, and from there, your chat ID. Easy stuff.”

“Christ,” Makoto sighed. “All that just because you wanted a friend?”

“I was tired of playing Civ alone,” Futaba admitted. “You can only slaughter max difficulty AI for so long before it starts to feel like a hollow victory.”

“You could have just played with randos,” Keiko said. “That’s what I do.”

“Yuck,” Futaba said. “That’s how we ended up with that other jerk.”

Shibuya was slightly trickier, but they were there for such a short amount of time that Futaba swore she’d be okay. She didn’t even get shaky the entire time, following Makoto’s lead through the platforms. 

“This kind of reminds me of being in the Metaverse,” Makoto said as they exited the platform and moved into her neighborhood.

“Does that mean everything there is an escort mission? I hate escort missions,” Futaba grumbled. Her voice became panicky when she had a realization. “Wait! I just made you two take me on an escort mission!”

Keiko chuckled. “It’s fine, Futaba. It’s a little different than a video game.”

“It’s not  _ that _ different,” Futaba grumbled again. “I will try to avoid being the type of liability that needs escorted everywhere.”

“Cool, because they already have me for that,” Keiko chuckled. “I’m happy to see my spot isn’t being threatened.”

They had entered Makoto’s building and she was turning the key into the lock as she rolled her eyes. “I miss not having friends.”

Futaba immediately ran to the couch to stare out the window. “Whoa!” She said, in awe of the view. “I’ve never been up this high before.”

“Told you the view was great,” Keiko smirked at Makoto.

“It’s a distraction,” she replied, rolling her eyes. 

“We don’t go back to school for another two weeks, darling,” Keiko replied. “You can take the stick out of your ass until then.”

“Darling? Did you just call me  _ darling?” _ Makoto’s cheeks burned and Futaba and Keiko cackled together. 

“I told you it’d kill her,” Keiko said through her laughter.

Futaba could barely get words out. “Her face is the same color as my hair!”

“When did you-” Makoto’s eyes got wide. “Were you two texting each other the whole way here?”

Keiko grinned. “We were making plans.”

“Plans for what?” Makoto stared expectantly at both girls.

“It’s Operation Raise the President’s Grouchiness,” Futaba said, still calming down. “Operation RPG for short.”

“Did you really just come up with a name based on those initials?” Makoto raised an eyebrow.   
“Well, it was better than Futaba’s other idea,” Keiko chuckled as Futaba tried and failed to cover her mouth. “FPS.”

“What’s that one stand for?”

“Keiko! This is traitorous behavior!”

“Fuck the President’s-” Futaba literally leapt at Keiko’s head.

“Futaba! She just had a concussion!” Makoto pulled the smaller girl off.

Keiko was out of breath as she finished her sentence. “Sister.”

Makoto was still holding Futaba like a heavy bag of potatoes when Keiko got the last word out.

Futaba was then dropped like a sack of potatoes.

Keiko was sure Makoto had a long diatribe on why she and Futaba needed to be on their best behavior, but they were saved when the phone rang. 

“Eiko’s what?” Makoto said. “Alright. I’m on my way.”

“Who was that?”

“Ren. Remember when we were in Shinjuku and we saw Eiko Takao going into that maid cafe?”

“I do,” Keiko said. “You seemed pretty upset about it.”

“Well, Ren just saw her hanging out with this creepy host who wouldn’t keep his hands off her.”

“And I take it you’re going to save her?”

“Something like that,” Makoto said. “Can I trust you two here alone?”

“You absolutely cannot.” Keiko chuckled. “We might burn the place down.”

“Please, behave yourselves.” Makoto sighed. “I’m going to regret this. Please. And I really mean this.  _ Please don’t bug my room.” _

“Why, I would never!” Futaba feigned offense.

A glare from Makoto shut her up.

“I’ll behave,” Futaba said meekly.

Makoto made her way to Shinjuku, where she would meet Ren. Keiko made her promise to give her constant text updates because Makoto going to Shinjuku alone was terrifying. They both agreed they probably couldn’t get Futaba in the outside world again. Twice in one day was pushing it.

Futaba was shockingly polite when Keiko and Makoto shared a goodbye kiss: She was too absorbed in something on her phone. She waited until Makoto left to speak up.

“So, do they have a Switch? Makoto strikes me as a Switch kind of gal.”

Keiko had a hard time not glaring at her friend. “Are you really asking this question? We haven’t gone that far!” 

“I’m talking about video games.” Futaba giggled.

Keiko blushed furiously. “Oh. I don’t think they believe in video games.”

She jumped back at the explosion that followed.

_ “Blasphemers!” _ Futaba shouted.  _ “Heretics!” _

“I think they’re both more focused on work and studying-”

“They don’t do anything for fun?”

“Makoto likes punching things,” Keiko shrugged. “Sae likes harassing your dad. Pretty sure that’s her only hobby.”

Futaba perked up. “Why’s she harassing Sojiro?”

‘I really should trade this information for something,’ Keiko thought. “She’s interested in your mother’s research for a case. I’m under the impression it’s her last resort.”

“Is it cognitive psience stuff?” 

Keiko nodded.

“Well, tell her I said ‘good luck’ because every bit of my mother’s research blew up with Alderaan,” Futaba grumbled. “I can’t believe they don’t even have a Wii. Everybody has a Wii!”

She’d been rummaging through the cabinet near the TV where most non-Makoto people would keep video games. The cabinet was instead full of Yakuza and mafia movies.

“Who’s the action movie junky?” She turned around and addressed Keiko. 

“Makoto,” Keiko said with a small laugh. “She’s been trying to get me to watch all of them with her.”

Futaba continued rummaging through the movies. “Good luck with that. Most of these are at least 3 hours long.”

Keiko let out a low whistle. “Fuck me.”

“That would be a good way to distract her from watching all these movies,” Futaba deadpanned, making her friend blush.

“That’s not what I meant.”

“And that is why you fail.” Futaba eventually gave up looking for something to do. “What do you people even do without video games?”

“Mostly discuss how we’re going to prevent the people causing mental shutdowns from giving me a mental shutdown,” Keiko shrugged. “Life is pretty stressful.”

“Wait-” Futaba quirked. “Have they tried before?”

“Uh, a few times, I think,” Keiko said, shrugging again. “It happens every time I make Akechi look like a bitch on TV.”

“Huh.” Futaba paused to think. “I wonder what’s stopping them.”

“What do you mean?”

“In theory, whatever they do to cause mental shutdowns is something people are defenseless against,” Futaba said with a shrug. “Think about that American. I bet he had the best security money can buy watching his every step. I’ve heard Mona-” Futaba noted Keiko’s concerned look. “I mean Morgana. I’ve heard Morgana hypothesize that it would be  _ really bad _ if we killed somebody’s shadow.”

“Wait. We?” Keiko raised an eyebrow.

“Yep. I’m going to join them if Ren lets me.” Futaba grinned. “I gotta know what happened to Mom.”

“But Futaba-” Keiko stopped speaking when her phone rang. She wasn’t expecting a call from Ohya. “Hello?”

“Hey, kid.” Ohya sighed. “I’m going to send a photo. You need to promise not to freak out.”

“Given the day I’ve had, I feel like you’re about to tell me that somebody wants me dead.”

“That’s a given, though,” Ohya said candidly. “We already know about that.” 

Keiko’s phone buzzed in her ear.

“You get the photo?”

“Yeah,” she said, putting her phone on speaker so she could still hear Ohya while checking. “Fuck.”

“You aren’t allowed to freak out,” Ohya said. “But I thought you should know.”

Keiko sighed and tried to ignore the sinking feeling. The photo showed Makoto and Ren sitting next to each other, looking awfully couple-like across from Eiko Takao and whatever shady-ass host she was getting boned by. “I really hope this is just a misunderstanding.”

“Me too, kid.” Ohya paused. “I’m heading into Crossroads. If I see them, I’ll say something. Lala-chan says hi.”

“Have a couple for me,” Keiko said.

“I plan to.” Keiko felt as horrible as Ohya sounded.

Futaba was surprisingly perceptive for being a hermit. “What’s wrong?”

Keiko held up the photo.

Futaba frowned, then grinned. “Does this mean you’re single because-” 

“Not the time!” Keiko stuck a finger in Futaba’s face. “They’ve got a lot of explaining to do!”

“I don’t know Ren that well,” Futaba said with a shrug. “I don’t think he’d steal somebody’s girl. I’m also pretty sure Makoto isn’t bi.”

The way Futaba spoke with certainty made Keiko uncomfortable. “Why do you sound so sure?”

Futaba removed her glasses and squinted at Keiko, before wiping them on her shirt. “She has an extremely specific search hist-”

“Alright, nevermind,” Keiko huffed. “Is it anything I need to be worried about?”

“Uh,” Futaba took a second. “No? Like, kind of?”

“Am I going to regret asking what you’re insinuating?” Keiko didn’t want to spend time invading her girlfriend’s privacy, even if she had the power to. 

“Most definitely. She found your doppelganger.” Futaba spoke with some trepidation. 

“Does my doppelganger do porn?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. 

Futaba chuckled. “At this point, Keiko, I’m concerned your doppelganger doesn’t do anything besides porn.”

“The good news is we’re pretty sure Makoto isn’t cheating with Ren,” Keiko said in a questioning tone.

“Correct.” Futaba nodded. “I highly doubt that’s what’s happening.”

“Should I still be mad at Makoto?”

“Probably,” Futaba shrugged. “I remember you freaking out at her for confronting that mafia guy. This is basically the same thing.”

“God damn it, Mako,” Keiko grumbled. 

===

_ Evening _

Futaba and Keiko tried to do the angry-parents-waiting-for-absent-teen bit when Makoto returned, but Keiko was too fuming-mad and Futaba couldn’t keep a straight face. Makoto opened the door to find a red-faced Keiko desperately trying to calm down.

“Uh, you’re in trouble,” Futaba said with a shrug. She patted a spot on the couch between her and Keiko on the couch, as if telling Makoto to sit. “I tried to help but I think I made it worse.”

“I don’t think I did anything,” Makoto said. “Did I?”

Futaba raised an eyebrow, reminiscent of Keiko. She wasn’t too great at interrogations. “Were you out with Ren?”

“She  _ knew _ I was out with Ren.” Makoto still showed visible confusion. 

“But like, it looked like a date, right?”

Makoto’s eyes went wide. “I didn’t tell her about my plan.”

“Problem solved. You tell her about what happened. I’m going to go read a book or something else that people who don’t own video games do.” She shook her head. “How do you survive without video games?”

“Mako,” Keiko spoke calmly. “Did you come up with  _ another _ plan that involved throwing yourself into danger stupidly?”

“I had Ren with me-”

“He’s in trouble too,” Keiko said. “Not as much as you are. But yes, he has some questions to answer. You’ve got 30 seconds to explain what you thought you were doing before Futaba reads your search history out loud, and sends a text file of it to your sister.”

“I didn’t agree to that,” Futaba clarified.

Keiko shook her head. “Can’t you just play along?”

“I function better as chaotic good than lawful evil.” She shrugged.

“As if Makoto weren’t already confused,” Keiko chuckled. She turned serious again. “But seriously, you need to tell me what you did.”

Makoto was all too willing to share what she did. She wanted to help Eiko Takao get away from her host boyfriend, who she and Ren thought was shady and looking to scam young girls. It turned out they were right, and Makoto came up with a plan that involved her and Ren pretending to double date with them to get Tsukasa to leave the young girl alone. It didn’t work, though, and now he had Makoto’s number, too. Her phone hadn’t stopped buzzing since they left. “I swear, Keiko, I would never, ever cheat.”

“I know,” Keiko sighed. “Are you positive this man isn’t Kaneshiro-dangerous?”

“Absolutely not,” Makoto said. “He’s a goofball. If I needed to shut him down, he’d be eating sushi through a straw for a month.”

“If things go south, I want a video of you breaking his jaw,” Keiko leaned over and gave Makoto a kiss on the cheek. Futaba chuckled but stopped when she discovered Keiko wasn’t kidding.

“I can try and make that happen,” Makoto returned a small smile. 

“I feel like Keiko watches women’s MMA instead of porn,” Futaba said matter-of-factly, earning looks from both women. She shrugged. “Are you gonna ask Makoto about the porn?”

===

_ Tuesday, August 23, Middle of the Night _

“It’s really cute that you think we’re rivals.”

The man in the black mask visited Keiko’s dreams again. He seemed to be in a better mood. Keiko felt herself respond, but her ears wouldn’t receive the words, only the noises. 

“You have no idea just how out of your league you are,” the man shook his head. “I could kill you in an instant. Right now, you’re safe and sound in your bed. I’m sure you locked the door.” He chuckled. “It wouldn’t matter, though. Your body might wake up, but you never would.”

Keiko felt a rasp coming from her throat like she’d been yelling for a long time. 

“The only thing stopping me from taking your life is a command that I keep you alive.” There was a matter-of-fact tone Akechi always used when speaking. Keiko felt her suspicions had been confirmed. “You’ve made yourself useful, you know? Your incessant rambling about conspiracy has landed you an unwilling, unknowing role in the rebuilding of a nation. I think you should take pride in that.”

Her throat  _ hurt  _ like she’d shouted too loudly. 

“You’re lucky I follow orders. If it were my choice, you’d be dead.” The man in the black mask shrugged and started to walk away. “And one more thing,” He sighed.

===

_ Early Morning _

“Keiko, you need to wake up.” Makoto normally had a much stronger grip than the one Keiko felt on her shoulder. She opened her eyes and found it wasn’t Makoto shaking her awake. Keiko made a sleepy noise before wondering why her heart was pounding. 

“You’re panicking,” Futaba said, grabbing Keiko’s hands. “I don’t really know what to do, but it usually helps when Sojiro holds my hand and talks to me.”

Keiko tried to sit up but fell right back down. Sweat ran down her forehead and realized she must’ve fallen asleep on the couch. Makoto had convinced them to watch one of her movies. 

“Was I talking?” Keiko’s voice didn’t hold the rasp it did in her dream.

Futaba nodded. “Something about Akechi.”

Keiko didn’t respond. 

“You accused him of performing the mental shutdowns,” Futaba said, her voice quivering slightly.

“Yeah,” Keiko sighed. “I probably did.”

“Do you really think he’s the one behind it? Did he say anything to you?”

“I know he is.” Keiko chewed her lip. “I just don’t have a way to prove it. He told me I’ve made myself  _ useful _ to whoever’s behind all this. I just don’t know how.”

“Do you-” Futaba paused, and stammered. “Do you think he’s talking to your shadow?”

Keiko didn’t know why the question startled her, but it did. “How would he do that?”

“I talked to mine,” Futaba confessed. “She helped me see through the lies I was telling myself.”

“Could I meet mine?”

“Uh,” Futaba looked nervous. “I think-”

Keiko knew better than to pry further. “It’s okay, Futaba. Maybe I’ll mention it to Makoto in the morning. Thank you for helping me, but you should get some sleep.” Keiko didn’t catch another wink.

She did, however, catch Sae when she woke up early for work.

“I didn’t see you come in.” Keiko sat up on the sofa when Sae sat down with her morning coffee.

“You and your friend were asleep,” Sae said, putting down her morning newspaper. “I didn’t want to wake you.”

Keiko secretly wished Sae had. It was obvious she hadn’t slept well, either. “Eh. I didn’t sleep all that great.”

“Me neither,” she grumbled. “Work’s been hell, lately.”

Keiko stood up and took a seat near Sae at the table. “I imagine. Want to talk about it?”

Sae shook her head as she started speaking. “Cops and higher-ups are too quick to pin crimes on anyone they deem inconvenient.”

“The Phantom Thieves?”

“Them, too, but I’m talking about Ryou.” Sae gave Keiko a tired smile. “Great job on your story, by the way. Sorry I kind of ruined your scoop.”

“Eh, I’m breathing,” Keiko shrugged. “I have a question, and you can feel free to ignore it.”

“I wouldn’t do that,” Sae nodded.

“Just pretend you’ve been working for 12 straight hours and Makoto needs something if it makes you uncomfortable,” Keiko said.

Sae winced. “I’m trying-”

“I never get the chance to bust your balls. Just this once, please?” Keiko chuckled. “What do you think of Akechi? Honestly.”

Sae took a deep breath. “I’ll admit he’s a bright kid, but-”

“But.” Keiko said.

“He doesn’t receive the criticism he should, and people around the office view him as the golden boy. He never does anything wrong, even when he does.” Sae grumbled. “Do you know how many extra hours I have to work because he fucks up basic things? He can barely figure out the paperwork. And so many of his deductions rely on sheer coincidence, things nobody could know. I’ve tried pointing it out, but nobody listens.”

“That’s honestly surprising,” Keiko said. “I assumed he would be competent at the very least.”

“Oh, he is,” Sae said. “He’s a smooth talker, and he’s got great instincts, apparently. That can carry a detective a long way.”

“Do you ever think his findings are too convenient?”

“Yes!” Sae said this far too loudly, but luckily Futaba didn’t stir. “So many of his findings are of convenience, but he’s found right upon investigation almost every time. I’ve never lost a case that I worked with him on.”

Keiko sighed. “I think he’s behind the mental shutdowns.”

Their eyes met, and Keiko couldn’t read Sae’s expression. “That’s a wild accusation to throw out.” Something in the way Sae spoke told Keiko that she believed her.

“Every time I write a story, appear on TV, or cross Akechi in any way, I get a visit in my dreams from a man wearing a black mask,” Keiko said. She wasn’t entirely sure she should be sharing this much. “He’s referred to himself as the Detective Prince before.”

“But that’s just a dream-”

“I know,” Keiko said. “It sounds ridiculous. But I found some things in Ryou’s data, and I think there’s a connection into how the mental shutdowns are performed and that missing research.”

“Isshiki-”

Keiko hushed her. “Don’t mention her right now.” She nodded back towards Futaba. 

Sae’s eyes widened. “That’s her daughter?” Keiko nodded. “Does she know anything?” 

“Even if she did, I wouldn’t tell you.” Keiko shook her head. “She never got to properly mourn her mother because the SIU couldn’t do their job properly.”

“What happened?”

“They made her read a suicide note  _ they wrote for her mother _ out loud,” Keiko said. “Multiple times. A letter they wrote that blamed Futaba for her mother’s apparent suicide.”

“Apparent-” Sae said. “But it was-”

“It wasn’t.” Keiko shook her head.

“I’ll see what I can dig up,” Sae nodded. “That was Akechi’s first case.”

“I know it was,” Keiko sighed. “Do me a favor. None of this gets mentioned to Akechi.”

“Not a word,” Sae said, trying to return a smile. “I don’t want to believe you, but if her suicide was truly a murder, that busts open many other cold cases.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter tops this story at 100k words, which is kind of outrageous and unnecessary but I've had far too much fun writing it so maybe it's more necessary than I'm thinking. 
> 
> Some thoughts on this chapter: Sae trusts Keiko because she's seen firsthand how exhaustive the process she goes through to put together a story is. It also helps that Keiko allegedly keeps Makoto out of trouble.   
> Futaba as extreme chaotic good is the part of this story I'm most excited to expand upon to a point where I'm considering outlining a Futaba-as-Wildcard fic because I haven't seen that done and I have a ton of stupid ideas for it.  
> Keiko is getting dangerously close to just being Eleanor Shellstrop from The Good Place, so I'm going to need to back off on that. 
> 
> My priority right now is finishing this fic instead of updating Trust Me, I Want Me Dead, Too. I have up through the next arc finished on that fic, just not posted. It will be going on a short break while I finish writing this story. I'll then be updating a third fic (the first chapter of which is already posted under the name Death All Around Me), although it will be a much shorter, darker fic that breaks most of my rules for fan fictions because I really don't have any good ways to give that story a happy ending. 
> 
> I appreciate everyone who reads, everyone who comments, and everyone who leaves kudos and subscribes. This has been the perfect way for me to cope with what has been an awful year, and you're all unwittingly apart of that. Happy New Year, everybody, and hopefully 2021 is just a little kinder to us all.


	16. Swing

_Wednesday, August 24, Morning_

Keiko understood why Makoto wanted to shift towards morning workouts. She had sound reasoning: It opened up the rest of their day to do whatever they wanted, and if something came up at night, they didn’t have to do it while smelling like sweat.

This did not mean that Keiko had to be happy about waking up early. 

She was slightly more upset when a series of text messages caused an infernal buzzing on Makoto’s dresser. She would have let it go had her extremely rude girlfriend not thrown her phone at her from across the room. 

“I’m sick of the buzzing,” she told Keiko before tossing the phone. “Who texts you this many times this early in the morning?” 

“Futaba,” Keiko said. “It’s nearly always Futaba.”

“Well, she’s busy, so hopefully it’s not her,” Makoto said. Futaba was to spend her day with Ren, Ann and Ryuji, who were going to force her out of the house in an effort to integrate her with society. The orange-haired introvert wanted nothing to do with their plot, and even that might have been an understatement. She was vehemently against anything that took her out of the house.

Surprisingly, the messages weren’t from Futaba.

 **Kasumi:** are you and Makoto busy this morning?

 **Keiko:** well im tryin to sleep and makoto is tryin to make me go to the gym with her

 **Kasumi:** would you two like to meet me at LeBlanc after? I’m sorry I’ve been AWOL…

 **Keiko:** We’ll see you there. Don’t worry about disappearin.

Keiko peeled herself off the bed and started getting dressed to go to the gym. Makoto was sitting at the dining room table waiting for her.

“You ready?”

“As I’ll ever be,” Keiko grumbled, taking a seat in front of the coffee cup Makoto set out for her. ‘Ugh. Instant coffee.’ She choked it down, and they left for the gym. 

They nailed that time between the morning rush hour and the lunch rush hour, so the gym was nearly empty when they arrived. It was nice to have the place mostly to themselves. 

As tired as Keiko felt, she decided today was a good time to push herself. If she wanted to meet her shadow, it would probably be best to get in the best fighting shape possible. Her plan had some faults, and Makoto noticed how much harder Keiko was pushing herself. 

“Good to see you taking this seriously!” She said after they took their first break. Makoto was actually having a difficult time keeping up with Keiko as they ran around the indoor track.

Keiko tried to catch her breath before she took a drink of water. “I always take this seriously,” she huffed, less out of annoyance and more because she hadn’t tried running that hard in a long time.

“Whatever you say,” Makoto shrugged. “Are we doing weights today or-”

“Weights is fine,” Keiko didn’t let her finish the other part. She didn’t know how to tell Makoto that the last few times they tried to spar ended particularly painfully. Whatever Makoto was doing over in _that_ world was making her much stronger in the real world. It was a good problem to have, Keiko thought. She had a lot of thoughts about watching her girlfriend overpower larger people.

All was going quite well until Keiko tried to lift too much weight at once, making Makoto scramble to come and help her.

“Okay,” Makoto huffed, giving Keiko a curious look.. “I wasn’t going to say anything.”

“I just thought I’d-”

“You’re being completely irresponsible,” Makoto said, checking the weights, then looking down at her notebook. “This is 50 pounds more than your previous personal best.”

“I felt like I could-”

“Yeah, no,” Makoto rolled her eyes. “I had to convince you it was okay to try a plate larger than 10 pounds. Now you’re trying to jump 50 pounds at once? I’m not stupid.”

“I just thought I should start taking this as seriously as you want me to,” Keiko said, although her tone betrayed her. It was an obvious lie. 

Makoto gave her a narrow look. It wasn’t quite a glare, but it was discomforting regardless.“Did you have one of those dreams again?”

Keiko nodded. “Yesterday morning.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Makoto looked awfully intimidating, standing there with her hands on her hips. 

Keiko had to prevent herself from choking on her words. “I uh, well, Futaba inadvertently helped me come up with a plan.”

“So, given you’re deflecting blame away from her, your idea is either incredibly stupid _or_ she’s the one that came up with the idea,” Makoto said. “I’m not sure which one is more frustrating.”

“She specifically told me this was a bad idea,” Keiko chewed the inside of her lip. “She was telling me how she met her shadow and I thought maybe I could meet mine?”

Makoto actually looked like she was mulling over Keiko’s request. 

“Like, this shadow is basically my other self, right?” Makoto didn’t look as angry as Keiko expected. “Even if my shadow isn’t exactly like me, she’s bound to have at least kept records of her encounters. I keep detailed notes of everything, there’s absolutely no way my shadow doesn’t, too.”

“Let’s finish our workout,” Makoto said. “I’ll think about it. We’re meeting Kasumi at LeBlanc anyway, right?”

Keiko nodded.

“I’ll talk to Ren while we’re there.” Makoto’s smile went a long way towards convincing Keiko that her idea wasn’t as stupid as she thought it was. “It’s a dangerous idea, babe.”

“I understand.” 

Makoto went right back to placing a proper amount of weight on the rack Keiko was using. It was still higher than her personal best, but only by 10 pounds. Keiko decided it was still okay to keep pushing herself. ‘Do your enemies take a day off?’ Makoto said that to her once. Keiko supposed she was right. Breaking personal records was always a nice feeling.

They journeyed back to Makoto’s apartment to shower before they went to LeBlanc. Neither of them was much for conversation, but post-workout conversation wasn’t the norm anyway. Keiko was usually too out of breath and Makoto liked to keep focus after a workout because she claimed it helped her study. Keiko couldn’t help but feel self-conscious, though, because giving Makoto her plan and not getting rebutted was almost as terrifying as Makoto going against it.

Keiko voiced this opinion as they went to leave the apartment.

“I’m surprised you’re even considering my idea,” she confessed.

Makoto gave her a thoughtful look. “It’s reasonable that you’d think it’s an option after talking to Futaba.” 

Keiko absent-mindedly wiped her own forehead. The August heat meant showering before going anywhere was a waste of time. “You really think so?”

Makoto nodded. “We really didn’t know if it was safe for somebody to meet their own shadow until Futaba entered her own palace. I was thinking of mentioning it to you, but I decided it would require going into detail on something too personal for her.” She shrugged. “I also assumed she’d tell you about it, herself, which is how it should be.”

They left the topic for private conversation later. 

“Welcome-” Sojiro cut off his greeting when he noticed it was Keiko and Makoto walking through the door. “Girls. It’s good to see you.”

Keiko would have made fun of him if he didn’t sound _so_ grateful. “How’s Futaba?”

“It’s like night and day,” Sojiro said. “Feeding all the kid’s friends for free was the best decision I’ve ever made.”

Keiko chuckled, but Makoto responded before she could. “We would have helped regardless-”

Sojiro waved her off. “I know you would.” He sighed. “I’m just happy to see Futaba out and about again. Ren’s upstairs if you guys are here for him.”

“We’re actually meeting Kasumi here,” Keiko said, but she nodded towards Makoto. “I think she wanted to talk to Ren about something.”

“I did,” Makoto nodded. “You wait here for Kasumi. I’ll go take care of something.” She made her way upstairs.

Sojiro waited for her to walk upstairs before he commented. “Is she ever not all business?”

“She’s got her moments,” Keiko grinned back. “Somebody’s gotta keep me in line.”

“Heh,” Sojiro chuckled, then went to work making coffee. LeBlanc was having the same lazy summer day the rest of Tokyo seemed to be having. Keiko didn’t want to be cliche, but it even seemed like the birds were taking the day off. The only people who weren’t slacking were Niijimas. 

“Saw you on TV yesterday,” Sojiro said, breaking Keiko out of her thoughts. “That Akechi guy you don’t like hangs out here some nights. I think he’s got a thing for the kid or something.”

“Oh,” Keiko made a face. “Is Ren-”

“I don’t think so.” Sojiro shrugged. “He looks pretty perturbed whenever the guy shows up.”

“That’s good,” Keiko sighed. “I hope Ren has better taste in partners than that.”

Sojiro looked up like he was looking straight into the attic. “All those poor women,” he shook his head. “He’s gonna get himself killed.”

“Oh?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. “Is he, uh, dating around?”

“I think so,” Sojiro said with a blank look. “There’s the red-head and the blonde that I’ve seen him with, then the doctor, and-”

“The doctor?” Keiko burst out laughing. “Seriously?”

Sojiro nodded, grinning. “The kid’s too much like me for his own good.”

“Did you sling it around like that when you were a kid?”

“I was the fuckin’ worst,” Sojiro grumbled. “It wasn’t til I met Wakaba that I realized there was more to life than, well, you know.”

Keiko nodded. “I don’t know if I could do that kind of thing.”

“What kind of thing?”

“Sleep around,” she shrugged. “I see lots of people and think, ‘wow, she’s pretty,’ or ‘he’s beautiful,’ but it’s more of an appreciation of aesthetics than it is attraction. Like, Yusuke, for example. We should kill him, stuff him, and throw him in a museum.”

“Jesus, kid,” Sojiro gave a horrified look.

“Uh,” Keiko looked around the cafe. “I’m just saying. He’s a beautiful man.”

“You’re a strange kid,” Sojiro scoffed and slid a cup of coffee in front of her. “No wonder you and Futaba get along. You’ve got a bit of her mother in you.”

“Hey, maybe her mother’s my real dad,” Keiko giggled. “It makes as much sense as anything else I’ve learned lately.”

“I wouldn’t put anything past Wakaba,” Sojiro said with a small laugh. 

“Speaking of real dads, mine isn’t,” Keiko said, taking a sip of her coffee.

“Uh,” Sojiro looked around the room. “It wasn’t me.”

“Duh,” Keiko chuckled. “It makes sense, I guess. He’s always been kind of absent.”

“I’m sorry, kid.” Sojiro saw right through the typical humor she coped with. “How’d you find out?”

“Oh,” Keiko shrugged. “My mom was talking about how she was going to get an abortion but her friend talked her out of it.”

“That’s a lot to unpack.” It took Sojiro several seconds to come up with even that non-committal response. 

Keiko understood. It was an awkward topic. “Yup! No existential crises here! Definitely not wrestling with the fact that even my mom didn’t want me.”

Sojiro must’ve had a rebuttal but the bell chimed and Keiko looked towards the door. She assumed Kasumi would be there any time now, although this wasn’t her. The woman standing in the door was a little shorter than Makoto, if Keiko had to guess, and she had brightly-coloured auburn hair that made her stick out almost as much as the pink sweater she wore in the middle of the summer. 

Keiko couldn’t remember where she knew her from, but she looked extremely familiar. Some guilt set in when the woman sat right next to Keiko. She wasn’t used to being unable to make a connection.

The woman greeted Sojiro and asked for a cup of house blend. She must’ve noticed Keiko staring after, because she gave a small, friendly smile. “We haven’t met,” she said. “You’re Miyahara-chan, right?”

“Uh, that’s me,” Keiko stammered. “Sorry. I’m still not used to getting recognized in public.”

“I feel your pain,” the woman said. Her voice was surprisingly cheerful. “But I’m actually a classmate of your girlfriend’s.”

“Uh,” Keiko looked around the cafe. “How did you find out about that?”

“It wasn’t hard,” she replied. “Mako-chan started coming to school extremely happy all the time, and you started coming to school with hickeys. You two are attached at the hip, so I put two and two together.”

Keiko winced. “Are we that obvious?”

“No, I don’t think you are,” she said.

Keiko found something in her tone unsettling.

“Well, could you at least introduce yourself,” Keiko tried to keep her tone light. She decided somebody who deciphered their relationship so easy wasn’t worth pissing off. “I’d feel better if we could pretend we’re friends or something.”

“Oh, I consider Mako-chan a friend,” she shrugged. “I’m Haru.”

Keiko had to stop to think. She didn’t know anyone by that name. “Haru-”

She sighed. “Okumura. I try to avoid using my surname, so please just call me Haru.”

‘Okumura,’ Keiko thought. ‘This isn’t good.’ Ryou’s connections to the Okumura Foundation sprung to the front of her mind. 

“If you’re here with a message from-”

“My father’s business is my father’s business,” Haru chirped. “And my business is mine.”

‘That sure sounds like a line from one of Makoto’s shitty movies.’ Keiko almost laughed, but Haru said it in such a bright tone that it would have felt rude. 

“I will confess, I did follow you here,” Haru apologized. “I didn’t intend to stalk you, but I didn’t have a better way of reaching you. I saw your appearance on television.”

“If this is about what I said about your father’s foundation-”

“You’re right to be suspicious of Kunikazu,” she said. “And you mentioned you only had suspicions without proof. That’s why I’m here.”

Keiko’s mind raced. Haru seemed like a sweet girl, if not a bit frightening, but something about this situation screamed honeypot. 

“I can help you get all the proof you need, and I won’t object to having the world know of my treachery once my father falls.”

‘Isn’t this the plot of Tommy Boy?’ “No offense, Haru, but you _do_ see how suspicious this is? I’ve been warned the world over that reporting on anything relating to your father is a death sentence.” ‘Well, technically nobody has said Okumura by name,’ Keiko thought. She had connected the dots, though.

Haru sighed. “I suppose I see where you’re coming from.” She chewed on her lip, and Keiko could tell she was mulling some thoughts over in her head. “What if I give you a story? Not like, one you can report on but it’s one you’ll definitely be able to verify.”

“How bad is it?”

“It’s more pathetic than bad,” Haru looked into the coffee Sojiro placed in front of her, and took a sip. “It’s about my fiance.”

Keiko was taken aback. “Fiance!? Aren’t you still-”

“I’m still in high school, yes,” she said. Her voice took on a sad tone. “My father wants to branch out into politics. In an effort to bolster his future campaigns, he offered my hand in marriage to a powerful political family’s youngest son.”

Keiko muttered a swear, then covered her mouth. Haru shook her head, as if saying not to worry about it.

“That’s part of the story,” Haru said. “But I would like you to know that you can trust me. Besides, we both have secrets we wouldn’t like the world knowing, don’t we?” Haru nodded upstairs. “Tell Mako-chan I said hi. Actually, it would be funnier if you told her I send my regards, but that might scare her.”

“I’ll be sure to tell her,” Keiko said. It would be funny to scare Makoto, but realistically, Keiko was already sitting there shitting her pants. “It was nice meeting you.”

Haru stood up and bowed as she made her exit. “Likewise. If you want to talk, meet me on the roof after school. I’m up there tending the garden most days, even during the summer. I would prefer to not give you my cellphone number, for your safety. Sugimura has been monitoring my phone calls and text messages.”

“You’ll hear from me soon,” Keiko said. Haru might’ve been scary, but it was obvious she felt like a bit of an outcast. “Another student is meeting Makoto and I here, if you’d like to join.”

“I wouldn’t intrude-” Haru started, but Keiko interrupted her.

“Nonsense,” Keiko shook her off. “Makoto needs friends her own age.”

“She’s literally a year older than-” Then Haru giggled. “Oh. You’re funny.”

Sojiro butted in. “I advise against telling her that. She’ll never shut up.”

“I can vouch,” a soft voice nearly made Keiko fall out of her seat.

“Kasumi! When did you get here?”

“I snuck in,” the red-head laughed at Keiko’s mini freak out. “You were too busy trembling in fear.”

“Am I really that scary?” Haru raised an eyebrow.

Nobody could meet her eyes. Not Keiko, not Kasumi, and not even Sojiro.

“Huh.” She shrugged. “I’ll work on that.”

Makoto and Ren came downstairs and slid into opposite sides of a booth. Keiko slid in next to Makoto, with Haru boxing her in and Kasumi slid into the seat next to Ren. They were sitting a little closer than usual. 

“How’d it go, Haru?” Makoto asked and Keiko gave her a look. Makoto had a smirk that made Keiko feel like she was on a prank show.

“It went great, Mako-chan,” she replied, grinning. “Keiko-chan is quite the catch!”

“Uh,” Ren looked sheepish. “I don’t think we’ve been introduced.”

“Oh!” Haru’s head snapped in his direction. “How rude of me! I’m Haru. I’m in Makoto’s class.”

“Nice to meet you, Haru,” Kasumi greeted, like nothing strange had been going on at all. “I’m Kasumi Yoshizawa.”

“I’m Ren Amamiya,” Ren’s smile was a little more natural this time. “Just Ren is fine.”

Keiko chose to push everything that had been going on out of her mind. She hadn’t talked to Kasumi in too long, and she needed to know how she was feeling.

“How’ve you been, Kasumi?” Keiko said, ignoring their present company, mostly. Morgana climbed his way into the booth and settled on a spot between Keiko and Haru. 

“I’m doing better,” she replied. “I was actually hoping if you and Makoto would be okay with me joining you more often for your workouts.”

“Don’t you have gymnastics?”  
“My coach wants me to switch to morning practices, and I’d like to focus on more practical training than just gymnastics.” Sojiro interrupted them briefly to see if any of them wanted food. Everyone opted for coffee and curry, with Haru demanding he let her pay for everyone even though he hadn’t planned on charging them. “But I think that’s what my sister’s secret was. She was never _just_ a gymnast. I’ve always focused solely on gymnastics so I could keep up with her, but I think what made her better was how well-rounded she was.”

“Was?” Haru asked, not necessarily expecting an answer. “I’m so sorry, Kasumi-chan.”

“It’s okay,” Kasumi sighed. “I think we’ve all bonded over tragedy. As much as I miss my sister, I’ve made good friends.” She leaned her head on Ren’s shoulder, his cheeks gaining some color.

“Ya know, it’s kind of funny that everyone in our little group here comes from a broken home,” Keiko said. “I’m the only one here with two parents and I just recently found out my mom wanted to have an abortion.”

“Oh my,” Haru said with a horrified facial expression..

Makoto rolled her eyes. “Don’t mind her. She copes by oversharing. Existential crises are fairly common.”

Sojiro saved the afternoon by dropping their food at the table, the quality of which floored Haru. 

Keiko got a kick out of her gushing to Sojiro about how much she loved his coffee and curry. Haru might’ve asked for a job. Keiko wasn’t sure, because she was too busy laughing.

===

_Evening_

**Ren:** sorry we didn’t get to talk

 **Keiko:** probably best to not have that conversation in front of Haru and Kasumi

 **Ren:** If you and Makoto drop by tomorrow night, we can talk.

 **Keiko:** We’ll be there. I need clean clothes anyway.

 **Keiko:** when did you and Kasumi become a thing?

 **Ren:** a few days

 **Keiko:** how’s Ann taking it?

 **Ren:** uh. She’s not speaking to me right now

 **Ren:** most the women in my life aren’t speaking to me, actually

 **Ren:** I swear to god, I didn’t mean to lead anyone on

 **Keiko:** stop hitting on every woman you meet

 **Ren:** I can’t help it

 **Keiko:** Sojiro said you were with the doctor, too

 **Ren:** and Kawakami

 **Keiko:** Good lord

 **Keiko:** you’re eskimo brothers with my parents   
**Ren:** fuck

 **Keiko:** hey does this mean you’re more related to my dad than I am?

 **Ren:** it doesn’t work that way

 **Keiko:** you can have him anyway

 **Keiko:** how’s Kasumi feel about this?   
**Ren:** might’ve been her idea, inadvertently

 **Keiko:** sweet little Kasumi?

 **Ren:** it’s not polite to kiss and tell

 **Keiko:** I’ll just ask Futaba

 **Ren:** Don’t!

Keiko just had to show the text string to Makoto, although she did swear her to secrecy first. Makoto wasn’t normally one to talk about this sort of thing anyway. Keiko just needed somebody to join in the laughter. 

Makoto’s first reaction was “I can’t believe he slept with a teacher,” followed by “I can’t believe he’d do that to a teammate!” She was a lot angrier than Keiko anticipated. She was on the phone with Ann seconds later. 

Their quiet night alone turned into another impromptu sleepover.

It turned out that Makoto was much more upset about Ren’s conquests than Ann was, and it also turned out that Ann wasn’t alone.

Keiko should have known something was up when Makoto started acting all nervous about company coming over. Ann shouldn’t have been a big deal. Maybe she hadn’t been over before, but there wasn’t a single person Makoto spent more time around than Ann, other than Keiko. And Haru, apparently. ‘I still had no idea about that.’

Keiko heard a knock on the door and nearly fell over when she checked the peephole. Shiho Suzui was the one who knocked.

She knocked a second time and Makoto called out. “Keiko!” She huffed. “You’re standing right there! Answer the door!”

Keiko did as she was told. “Hi, Shiho,” she said. ‘A warning would have been nice,’ Keiko thought. Keiko stepped to the side to let her in. “Where’s Ann?”

Shiho looked good, and from what Keiko could tell, she was back to her old self. “She’s checking the corner store for gallons of ice cream,” she said, rolling her eyes. She tossed her backpack on the floor, leaning against the couch while Makoto finished the night’s dishes. Shiho plopped on the couch like she owned the place. “I don’t know if she’s really looking for ice cream. I just know she stopped at the corner store.”

“That’s good,” Keiko said. “Is she really that broken up over-”

“Over Ren?” Shiho shrugged. “Nah. She knew what that was.”

Keiko chuckled. “Makoto is pretty angry about it.”

“About what?” Shiho raised an eyebrow.

“Our leader is a philanderer!” Makoto scandalized Ren’s infidelities without pointing out that Kasumi may or may not have been privy to them. 

“Leader?” Shiho immediately changed the subject, giving Makoto a puzzled look. Keiko glared at Makoto. She tried to keep the celebration that she finally mastered Makoto’s glare. “What could you possibly mean by that?”

Shiho’s inflection gave Keiko the idea that she was just messing with Makoto. 

Makoto sighed. “You know?”

“I knew before Ann told me,” she grinned. “Imagine being stuck in a hospital bed, unable to walk, then getting told the guy that caused literally all of your problems confessed and was going to jail, all while your best friend is coming in looking exhausted, and not in the mourning, I-almost-lost-my-friend way.”

“You should have seen Makoto the first few times she went,” Keiko said. “She came back huffing and puffing. You ever see _anything_ get Makoto that winded?”

“Can’t say I paid much attention to her,” Shiho said. “No offense, but if Ann didn’t spend months vouching for you,” she addressed Makoto. “You’d have been next to Kobayakawa on my shit list.”

“Deservedly so,” Makoto said. 

“Eh,” Shiho said. “It’s in the past. Not gonna pretend I’m over it, but you’re obviously making up for it.” Shiho glanced over towards the window. “Being up this high is kind of terrifying.”

“I can close the shades, if that helps,” Keiko offered.

“Don’t,” Shiho shook her head. “I’ll be dealing with the fallout from earlier this year for the rest of my life, but I’m not going to let it ruin the rest of my life.”

“That’s admirable,” Makoto said. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t helpful at all.”

“You’re making up for it now, right?” Keiko could tell Shiho was putting forth Herculean effort to keep the night from becoming depressing. “Besides, technically the Phantom Thieves exist because of me and that’s really fucking cool.” 

“So, next time on TV when they ask me who the mastermind behind the Phantom Thieves is, I should say Shiho-” Keiko got cut off after Makoto threw Buchi-kun at her.

“How dare you!” Keiko picked up Buchi-kun off the ground and held the stuffed panda like a baby. “I’m calling Child Protective Services. You’re a bad mother.”

“I guess you _are_ the expert on bad mothers,” Makoto razzed. Keiko would have retorted had Ann not knocked on the door. “Buchi-kun is tougher than he looks.”

“Because he’s so used to your abuse!” Keiko argued back, then turned towards Shiho, noticing she had her phone out recording the entire ordeal. “Uh, whatcha doin’ with that video?”

Shiho nonchalantly looked at the ceiling. “Oh, nothing.” She received no further questions, because Ann knocked on the door. 

Keiko took her leave to open the door for Ann, who was juggling a bag from the corner store, a bag of her belongings, and her phone. She was delirious with laughter, giving Keiko a good idea of what Shiho did with the video.

“This is _so_ getting sent to the group chat,” she grinned. “Think we can get a good still frame of Makoto’s face when she gets called a bad mother? I can use that as her picture in my phone.”

“Low key kind of want the photo, too,” Keiko said, trying to stay out of Makoto’s earshot. It would have worked better had they not been sitting next to each other on the couch, with Shiho sitting on the easy chair across the room. 

“I’m surprised you don’t have something more,” Ann shrugged. “Personal?”

Keiko and Makoto shared a look, both red-cheeked. 

Ann chuckled. “Or not. Did I miss anything?”

They all settled in, mostly talking about school and the Phantom Thieves, and then Ann pulled a bottle of wine out of her travel bag and Makoto decided it was okay for them to break out the whiskey after she texted her sister to make sure it was okay.

Keiko still couldn’t believe Sae was okay with anything like that occurring in her apartment, but she also imagined Sae had too much other shit to worry about. She was working another overnight. Keiko tried not to let that put a damper on the fun. 

“So, I have to know,” Makoto normally wasn’t one for gossip and Keiko was surprised Ren’s exploits bothered her this much. “What happened with Ren?”

“Yeah, Ann,” Shiho said in a teasing voice. “What happened with Ren?”

Ann blushed furiously. _“Nothing,”_ she said in a biting tone that would have shut up any other person except Shiho. 

Shiho rolled her eyes. “She told Ren it would just be fun, no strings attached, casual,” then she glanced at Ann, who was covering her face out of embarrassment. “Then blurts out that _she loves him_ in the middle of it.”

“It was really good, okay!?” Ann still couldn’t show her face, her embarrassment worsening with Keiko’s laughter. “It’s so embarrassing. I didn’t even mean it, damn it.”

“Anyway, Ren freaks out because what guy wouldn’t freak out when his no-strings attached fling just blurts out I love you while she’s-”

“Shiho!”

“Fine.” Shiho grinned. “While she’s in the throes of passion,” she said in a dramatic voice. “That better?”

“You somehow made it worse.” Ann pouted. 

Shiho ignored her, and continued with the story. “Then she finds out later that he’s slept with half the women in Tokyo because _of course he has!”_

“Practice makes perfect,” Keiko cackled. 

Shiho laughed. “He’s had plenty of practice.” 

“I knew about this and I was fine with it!” Ann protested. 

Makoto interjected. “Do you know who else he’s slept with?” 

“Uh, we may have talked about them at some point,” Ann said sheepishly.

Makoto didn’t catch the hidden meaning but Keiko nearly fell over laughing. “Is everybody in my life a swinger?”

“I literally said the same thing!” Shiho joined in. “It’s like, am I the only normal one?”

“I’m not a swinger-” Makoto started to protest.

“Yeah, but you’re practically a robot-”

“Don’t press that button, Shiho,” Keiko warned. “That’s her self-destruct button. It makes her do crazy things like confront a mafia boss in the real world and ask me out on a date.”

Makoto joined Ann in her pouting, albeit for extremely different reasons. 

“So, Ann, who all has Ren slept with?” Keiko turned her attention away from Makoto, although that didn’t stop her from holding her girlfriend’s hand.

“Uh, I’m not sure I’m allowed to-”

“If you don’t tell them, I will,” Shiho’s smile reminded Keiko of a conman on an old cartoon. 

“Fine!” Ann grunted, frustrated at her friend. She pulled out her phone and Keiko couldn’t keep from laughing.

“Are you keeping a list?”

Shiho chortled. “It’s a spreadsheet.”

Makoto gasped. “Would you like me to read it? I feel like neither of you will be able to keep a straight face.”

“I want nothing more than for you to be the one to read this out loud,” Keiko said. “Just to see your face.”

Makoto rolled her eyes and Shiho tossed her the phone. Makoto’s eyes widened as she started reading off the names. “Tae Takemi.”

“That’s the doctor down the block from LeBlanc,” Keiko said.

“He gets our medicine there,” Ann said. “Makes sense how he always has so many extras, now.”

“Hanasaki.”

“No fucking way,” Keiko said. “The flower lady?”

“More like the deflowered lady,” Ann said, rolling her eyes. Then her eyes got big, and she sighed. “I’ve been hanging around Yusuke too much.”

“He’d make a great rebound,” Keiko said, earning a glare from Makoto. “What?”

Makoto rolled her eyes and continued. “Hifumi Togo,” then she looked up. “Like, the shogi princess?”

“That one was wild for me, too,” Ann said. 

“Huh, all this time I complained about Shujin having a starfucker problem and my friend is a literal starfucker,” Keiko and Shiho continued their laughter. 

“I have no idea how I fell for-” Makoto changed up her wording. “How I ended up dating somebody so crass.”

“I balance you out,” Keiko said, leaning over and planting an obnoxious kiss on her cheek. “Back to the list!”

“Kawakami,” Makoto didn’t react to this one as poorly. “I already knew about that one. No _wonder_ she seems so much happier lately.” 

Kawakami had recently informed Keiko that she quit her job as a maid so she could focus on teaching. Apparently, the people she owed money to backed off. “Good for Miss Kawakami, I guess,” Keiko said, shrugging. 

“Very good for Miss Kawakami,” Ann said before she covered her mouth again. Her suggestive tone must have come from her subconscious.

“Join in the fun, Blondie,” Shiho grinned at her friend. “This is somehow more ridiculous than your usual drama. Bask in it.”

“Agreed,” Keiko said. “This is a great distraction.”

“Uh, Chihaya Mifune?” Makoto raised an eyebrow. “Do I know that name?”

“She’s a fortune teller in Shinjuku,” Ann said. “Ren helps her out sometimes.”

“Right,” Makoto said. “We’ve seen her before.”

“I’m discovering a whole lotta shit,” Keiko said. “Turns out she was right.”

“Anyway,” Makoto sighed. “Looks like that’s all the names.” She threw the phone back to Shiho. “That’s honestly not as bad as I was expecting.”

“He’s been transparent with everyone,” Ann sighed. “Kasumi might be the luckiest woman on the planet.”

“Uh, do I want to ask why?” Keiko looked at Ann. 

“Let’s just say, some people are born with a silver tongue, and others are born with a golden tongue.” Ann shrugged. “I think he surpassed ‘golden’ somewhere between number four and number five.”

Makoto looked confused. “Number four or number five?”

“Ann, I don’t think they-” Shiho had been lost in thought for a bit when she spoke up.

Keiko didn’t let her finish. “We haven’t gone that far yet.”

“Oh. Well, there’s no hurry in it,” Ann said. “I didn’t mean to imply there’s anything wrong with not-”

“I’m going to get a drink,” Keiko said. “Anybody else want a drink?” Makoto still looked profoundly confused.

“Wait, Ann, wasn’t there another name on that list?”

“Shiho, I read all the names-”

“No, I’m pretty sure you missed one, Prez,” Shiho said, pulling her phone out again. “The name just says Aya from down the road.”

Keiko stopped her walk towards the kitchen and turned around. “Forget the drink offer. Makoto?”

“Yes, dear?” Keiko could see the nervous look on her girlfriend’s face.

“Thank you for trying to leave the name off the list,” Keiko sighed. “I’m definitely getting a drink, though.”

“Did I miss something?” Shiho had a concerned look on her face. Keiko’s mood had soured rapidly.

“Shiho, I left that name off the list on purpose.” Makoto sighed. “Aya is Keiko’s mom.”

“Welp.” Shiho annunciated the ‘p’ sound so it sounded like a pop. 

===

_Thursday, August 25, Afternoon_

**Ren:** Are you guys still coming tonight?

 **Keiko:** Ah. Probably not.

 **Ren:** Oh. did something happen?

 **Keiko:** does “aya from down the block” ring a bell?

 **Ren:** uh. That’s very specific wording

 **Keiko:** that’s my mom

 **Ren:** oh.

 **Ren:** oh no

 **Ren:** I’m so sorry

 **Ren:** seriously I didn’t know

 **Keiko:** are there any women in your life you haven’t fucked?

 **Ren:** just you and Makoto. And Kasumi

 **Keiko:** the one you’re dating?   
**Ren:** I uh. We’ve only been together for a few days. I would never, ever cheat on Kasumi, or anyone. 

**Ren:** You guys should just come over tonight. If you want to punch me again, it’s whatever. 

**Keiko:** I’ll bring my knife.

Most news of this sort made Keiko shut down, but given she was already seething with rage at her mother for talking about how she would have preferred to have an abortion to having children _while meeting her girlfriend’s family for the first time,_ she must have blown right through the shutdown and into boundless energy. For the first time since they started training, Keiko nearly kept up with Makoto effortlessly. It earned her some very odd looks afterward that she didn’t know how to read. 

They were now sitting at Makoto’s apartment. Sae came home sometime that morning and was given the day off work. Makoto decided to make lunch while her sister caught up on sleep.

Makoto finished lunch, and put some extras in the fridge for Sae for after she woke up.

She tried to strike up a conversation while they ate. “You seemed inspired at the gym this morning.”

“Yeah,” Keiko shrugged. “It was nice to have something to hit.” She slurped up the noodles Makoto prepared.

“I get that,” Makoto sighed. “You need to promise me you won’t punch Ren again.”

“No guarantees. He deserves it.”

“I doubt he knew she was your-”

“She looks just like me!” Keiko spat back. “You really think he didn’t pick up on that?”

“I think there’s a good chance that he didn’t,” Makoto said. She countered Keiko’s outburst with calm, measured words. “You don’t look as much like your mother as you think, and I think we both know how little thoughts we put into our actions when we get carried away.”

“You don’t need to give your _leader_ an excuse,” Keiko huffed. “It’s not your fault he’s a manwhore.”

“You’re being a hypocrite,” Makoto said. “I won’t continue this conversation until you can have a reasonable discussion.”

“I’m not being a hypo-”

“Yes.” Makoto looked down at her bowl, seemingly wishing she had more food. “You had no problem with him sleeping around until you found out he slept with your mother. Your mother and your father have an open marriage. Ethically, the only wrong he committed was unintended.”

Keiko huffed. “Fine. I’ll behave.”

“You can totally punch your mom, though,” Makoto said. “I recall you specifically telling her to stay away from Ren.”

A voice came from the other room. “Are you seriously encouraging her to beat up her own mother?”

“It’s reasonable, Sis,” Makoto said, nudging Keiko. “Tell Sae what happened.”

Keiko shrugged. It wasn’t like Sae didn’t already know much darker, more dangerous secrets about Keiko’s life. What was telling her about Aya’s infidelities?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof this chapter is just basically "poor everyone." God damn it, Ren. 
> 
> Let me know what you think!


	17. Serial Philanderer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A text chain between Keiko and her mother has been deleted from chapter 16, so in the sense of this story's narrative, it no longer exists. I apologize for the gaslighty nature of the deletion, but I think the chapters following benefit from expanding on the feelings expressed in that text chain rather than airing those feelings out immediately.
> 
> Thanks to Takedo for pointing out the inconsistency.

_ Thursday, August 25, Evening _

“Kid’s upstairs,” Sojiro greeted the girls, understanding they were there on business, of sorts. “If you’re gonna kill him, let me know. My buddy has a hog farm-”

“I’m not gonna kill him,” Keiko said, knowing there was a small chance that she might kill him. “At least, not yet. I’d like him to suffer first.”

“I-” Sojiro stammered a bit. “I’m just going to head home. Tell Ren to make sure Futaba makes it home before you kill him.”

“Ah. I can’t kill him in front of Futaba,” Keiko frowned.

“Yeah,” Sojiro smiled. “I knew that plan would work.”

“Traitor,” Keiko narrowed her eyes. “Good idea, though.”

“Keiko, I still think you’re being a bit hypocritical,” Makoto chided her. “You wouldn’t even have found out if you didn’t goad them into talking about it.”

“Can you stop being the voice of reason for just a minute?” Keiko chuckled. “I’m not gonna kill him. I’m just gonna scare him a little.”

“We could have had Haru do that.”

“I don’t know her that well,” Keiko shrugged. She marched up the stairs with Makoto to find Futaba sitting on the couch, a laptop in her lap.

“Wanna know what your mom sounds like when she’s-” 

“Futaba!” The former agoraphobic shrugged when she received glares from all three people. 

Futaba’s eyes shifted around the room, looking at anything besides her friends. “I take that as a no,” she said in a hushed tone as if speaking to herself. “The thanks I get…”

“Go ahead and uh,” Ren peeled his eyes away from Futaba and gestured awkwardly. “Sit wherever.” 

Keiko took a seat on the couch, nudging Futaba over so Makoto could sit on the other side. “I’m assuming the couch is at least fairly clean?”

“Huh?” Ren shook his head. “No. I keep things to the bed.”

“That’s-” Keiko sighed. “That’s great, Ren.”

Makoto wanted to cut right through the crap, she’d told Keiko, so she did. “Keiko asked if she could meet her shadow. I thought it would be best to run it by you.”

“I appreciate you running it by me before you just ran in,” Ren said. “And I don’t mean that sarcastically.” He addressed Keiko directly. “I hope it’s okay that Makoto told me about the dreams.”

“It is,” Keiko said. 

Ren nodded. “Good. As for right now, I don’t think we should be taking you into the Metaverse unless you absolutely feel it’s necessary.”

“I need that-”

Ren interrupted her. “I’m not done. We can meet your shadow. Makoto can do the talking, and we’ll have Futaba keep detailed notes. We’ll relay every piece of information that comes from the trip to you.”

“How do I know you’ll get the same information I would?” Keiko felt like the Phantom Thieves’ annoying kid sister.

Ren raised an eyebrow. “Don’t you trust Makoto?”

“I don’t think there’s any information I couldn’t get from your shadow that you could,” Makoto said. “Given what we’ve seen from other shadows, they tend to be fairly talkative.”

“So, you haven’t met mine, yet?”

Ren shook his head, but Makoto responded.

“I ran your name through the Metanav and got a hit, but it was more out of curiosity than anything else,” Makoto said. “I can’t imagine what a shadow version of you would be like.”

“Outrageously spiteful or outrageously horny, probably both,” Futaba said, sounding bored. 

“I’m neither of those things!”

“Your search history says otherwise,” Futaba drolled. “Wednesday night, 10:13 p.m., ‘how to dispose of a dead body without getting caught.’ Wednesday night, 11:29 p.m., ‘brunette gets-’”

“Alright!” Keiko interrupted her. “You’ve proven your point.”

“I didn’t even get to all of the porn searches,” Futaba huffed. “You know there’s like, specific sites for that, right? You’re not going to find anything just using a search engine.” 

Nobody responded to Futaba.

“I can read Makoto’s if you’d like. It’s kind of cute, actually,” Futaba shrugged. 

“Anyway,” Ren said, desperately trying to change the subject. “We’ll check the next time we go, and we’ll relay everything that happened. If it doesn’t go well, or if we can’t figure anything out, we’ll bring you in with us. I don’t anticipate that happening.”

Keiko sighed. “Okay.” 

“Okay?” Ren raised an eyebrow to get confirmation.

“Okay,” Keiko repeated. “I’m going to hang out with Kasumi, in the meantime.”

Ren looked nervous. “Are you going to-”

“I’m just going to ask her a few questions,” Keiko had a glint of mischief in her eye. “You told me it was  _ her _ idea for you to just sling yourself around like a young Marlon Brando.”

“Uh,” Ren started to sweat. “It’s true, though.” 

“She get her kicks out of that or somethin’?” Keiko gave him a hard look.

“It’s nothing like that!” Ren shouted, far louder than necessary for present company. “I meant she just gassed me up a lot. Like, if someone showed interest, she really pushed me to go after it.”

“So it’s Kasumi’s fault you fucked my mom?”

“What?” Ren winced. “Not, like, directly. I’ve just like,” he shrugged. “I’ve always been good at listening and picking up on subtle cues. Kasumi just helped me have the confidence to act on some impulses I used to ignore. Boss helped, too, I guess.”

Keiko sighed. “How the fuck do you make the road to becoming a serial philanderer sound wholesome? You’re supposed to be the asshole that forced himself on my mother or something.”

“It’s nothing like that, Keiko,” he said. “I promise.” 

“And if you  _ ever _ cheat on Kasumi-”

“You can all form a line and take turns kicking me in the balls as hard as you can,” Ren said. “I’ll have deserved it. It won’t happen, though.”

“I believe you,” Keiko said. “Ann seemed to believe you, too. But I would like to leave soon. I have a mother to disown.”

“Go easy on her,” Ren said. “She, uh, well, I don’t really have much to say about her. She kind of threw herself at me, then didn’t say anything after.”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “She’s such a stupid bitch. I’m sorry you got caught up in my petty family bullshit.”

_ “I’m _ sorry,” Ren said. “If she hadn’t come with a glowing recommendation from Kawakami, I wouldn’t have-”

“You mean fucking Kawakami is in on this?” Keiko let out a frustrated grunt. “I’m gonna kill her.”

“You want her number?” Ren pulled out his phone, and Keiko’s buzzed. 

Keiko left Makoto at LeBlanc with Ren while she journeyed home to get more clothes, and more importantly, rip her mother a new one. 

If only the march towards her home didn’t feel like the last steps she’d ever take. She felt like a stranger, knocking on the front door of her own home like this, but she wanted to ensure she wasn’t going to find a hooker knuckle deep in her- well, she didn’t want to walk in on her parents again. 

Her mother answered the door with a grateful smile that  _ almost _ made Keiko decide against confronting her. No time away would change the fact that Aya was still her mother, and some part of Keiko still cared for her family, even if they were a bunch of freaks. 

But, they did greet each other as family often did, with a hug. Then they traveled to the kitchen, and Keiko’s mother immediately apologized before Keiko could even confront her. 

“I’m going to confess something before you try and pretend things are normal.” Her mother eyed her fearfully. Keiko had never seen her mother so close to tears. Her father, or whatever he was, was the emotional one. “I did something you specifically asked me not to do.”

“You slept with Ren?”

“You knew?”

“I just found out yesterday.” Keiko shrugged. “I was coming to rip you a new one, but honestly, it seems like you’ve already done my job for me.” She was being honest, too, because according to Ren’s side of the story, he was as blindsided by Aya’s identity as Aya seemed to be his. “Ren seemed to think Becky was more at fault than you.”

“I reached out to Becky to see if she knew anyone who was,” she shrugged. “Putting out? I’m sure you don’t want to know, but your father isn’t much for-”

“You’re correct,” Keiko said. “I don’t want to know.”

“I didn’t know it was that kid until I got there, and then-” She sighed. “Any port in a storm?”

Keiko stood up, pounding her fists on the table. “He’s fucking 16!”

“He’s 18!”

“He’s the same year as me, you fucking jackass,” Keiko groaned. “You, and everyone else, should be considered a fucking predator. Imagine if he was a girl?”

“Uh, not going to defend me, but Becky’s not much older than you,” she shrugged. “I’ll wear this. My bad. I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”

Keiko wanted to let that be that, and forgive her mom. But something about the whole situation still had her feeling miserably furious. The calm she’d built up since stepping through the front door was quickly evaporating. 

“Just make sure they’re legal next time you get your needs met,” Keiko grumbled. “I’m going to grab some clean clothes and some other things.”

“Keiko, I’m seriously sorry-”

“Stop,” Keiko stood up from her seat at the kitchen table. “I’ll be back for my things, eventually.”

“What-”

“I’m moving out.” Keiko was probably just as shocked at her own words as her mother was. ‘That wasn’t part of my plan, but-’ her own words cut off her thoughts. “I have enough money saved up from my TV appearance fees and freelancing that I can afford a down payment and a few months rent.”

“You can’t-” her mother was beside herself. Keiko fought the urge to vomit.

“I’m done with you.” Keiko again had to fight the urge to keep her lunch down. “Until you can figure out how to be an adult, I’d prefer you not contact me.”

Keiko turned around to head towards the front door, her own words burying her in grief.

“What about your father?”

“What about him?” Keiko turned around and bit her mother’s head off. “You mean the sperm donor or the guy who uses you as a beard?”

She was upstairs before her mother could respond. 

Her bedroom had a thin layer of dust over everything, and she mumbled an apology to her PC for leaving it alone all this time. “I’ll be back for you soon,” she told it. She grabbed an extra backpack out of her closet and started filling it with all the clothes she could. Keiko would have to get a new school uniform, so she didn’t bother packing any of them. They’d become tight around the shoulders, and she probably had Makoto to blame for that. 

‘Speaking of things not fitting properly,’ Keiko chuckled as she found her old one-piece swimsuit. She hadn’t gone swimming since she was a little kid living in an apartment complex that had its own outdoor pool. It was one of the few times her dad did anything with her. He taught her how to swim, and promised they’d get to the ocean someday. It never happened.

Going to and actually enjoying the ocean would be a dream come true. ‘Maybe I can get Ann and Shiho to go shopping with me without Makoto,’ Keiko thought. She had second thoughts. Though. As nice as it would be to show off for Makoto, the extra attention she’d get everywhere else would be quite unwelcome.

Keiko was all packed and ready when she decided one last look out her window would be appropriate. It could put into perspective just how incredible the view from Makoto’s apartment was. 

A light flickered on in the abandoned office building across the street. ‘I never did figure out what was going on over there,’ Keiko sighed. ‘Maybe they’ll rent me the space and I could just live there.’

She wanted no part of living this close to her parents. 

Then the window covering on the building peeled back to reveal a demure smile belonging to a young girl with brightly colored blonde hair and even brighter yellow eyes, like those of a cat. 

===

Keiko caught a glimpse of a man with an extremely long nose, sitting at a desk next to an extremely blue, poised young girl, maybe a bit younger than Futaba. 

The man seemed content to grin at her, so Keiko decided to speak first.

“Are you like, my spirit animal or something?” 

The man’s face twisted into an amused look while he received a side-eye from the girl. 

“Like, it makes sense,” Keiko shrugged. “You have a long nose. I’m nosey. It fits.”

“Your appearance here is most unexpected,” the young girl had a quiet, soothing voice. Their presence held an ethereal air that unsettled Keiko. She couldn’t help but feel like she shouldn’t have been staring at that office window. “But it is not unwelcome.”

“I don’t really play nice with vague statements,” Keiko chewed her lip. Something ate at her brain telling her these weren’t people she should anger. “Can you at least tell me why I’m here?”

“You’ve waded into dangerous waters.” The man’s voice came out higher pitched than she anticipated. “Although, your actions to this point have shown you to be a capable ally.”

“Ally to who?”

The world went black.

===

“Dude, this vague shit is really getting on my-”

Keiko heard the sound of somebody falling out of a chair. “Did I fucking pass out  _ again?” _

She checked her surroundings, noting the blue-ish grey, but decaying walls, and how supremely uncomfortable the bed she laid in was. Then she heard somebody scramble to their feet.

“Thank god,” Makoto huffed in relief as she threw herself into Keiko’s arms as she tried to sit up. “We thought you were gone-”

“Are we at Takemi’s office again? Do I still have my organs? I swear if I’m missing my liver I’ll-” Keiko gulped when she heard the doctor clear her throat from behind her.

She almost felt bad. “I’m literally  _ right _ here, you know? Do you really want to question the general practice doctor that took an emergency call at 2 a.m.?”

“2 a.m.?” Keiko gasped. “I was out until 2 a.m.?”

“I kind of had to break into your house to make sure you were okay,” Makoto said sheepishly. She sat back in her chair but kept hold of Keiko’s hand. “Your mother wouldn’t let me in.”

Keiko huffed. “That piece of shit.”

“She seemed pretty angry,” Makoto said. Her voice was a tad raspy from staying up too late. “I don’t know what you said to her.”

“I told her I was moving out.” 

Makoto’s breath hitched briefly, but she kept her composure. “Where are you going to live?”

“I have enough cash saved up from my TV appearances and freelance articles that I should be able to get a nice place,” Keiko said. ‘Thank god for Shinichi Yoshizawa.’ After her first time on television, he started personally negotiating her appearance fees in relation to the show’s ad revenue and ratings for when she was on. He wanted to make sure she was taken care of in return for basically allowing him exclusivity. Ohya getting her a few separate paychecks for the Ryou story helped, as well. Keiko made more yen in the last few months than her parents did per year.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Keiko couldn’t help but feel like Makoto was projecting her fear of sleeping at her apartment alone onto Keiko. “I mean, weren’t you saving that money for college?”

Keiko chuckled. “Well, thanks to  _ somebody,  _ I tied for top marks among second-years.”

“Why don’t you tell me these things!?”

Takemi interjected. “As much as I’d enjoy watching you two profess your undying love for one another, I really would like to get  _ some _ sleep.”

Keiko nodded, while Makoto looked a bit offended. “What’s the prognosis, doc?”

The doctor’s huff told Keiko she was very much done with their shit. “Well, I did some scans when you got in. Brain activity was normal. Heart rate was slower than normal, but not dangerously so. Your blood pressure is abnormally high, but Makoto said you’re on a lifelong journey to replace your bloodstream with coffee, so I’m just going to warn you to limit your intake.”

Keiko glared at Makoto, who didn’t laugh but definitely wanted to.

“Other than that, I think you’re entering guinea pig territory,” the doctor scratched the back of her head. “I’d suggest you to the university hospital, but I’ve read your symptoms somewhere before.”

“Where?”

“I’d rather not say.” Takemi took a seat and leaned back. Keiko didn’t take her for a nailbiter, but she was chomping away at her nail beds. Nail polish couldn’t have tasted good. 

“Why?” It took Keiko some effort not to fall back into some nail-biting of her own. 

“We’re entering dangerous territory, and I need to know if I can trust you.” The doctor gave both her and Makoto a serious look. “Ren swears you’re trustworthy.”

“I can’t say he’s talked much about you,” Keiko said, deciding against confronting her about her exploits sleeping with a man much younger than- wait, how old is Dr. Takemi? She supposed her and ‘Becky’ might get a pass. Neither of them were all that much older than Ren. “But I do know some things about you that I haven’t told anybody, in case you’re worried I’m a snitch or something.”

“What could you possibly-”

“I know you fucked a 16-year-old.”

Makoto chortled as Takemi’s face twisted from shock to anger, earning looks from her girlfriend and the angry doctor. “What? She can laugh at people for making funny faces but I can’t?”

Keiko sighed. 

Then the doctor sighed and pulled out a piece of paper normally used for writing prescriptions. She scribbled a number and street name on it. “Meet me at my apartment Saturday. I close early that day. We can’t talk about it here.”

Keiko and Makoto looked at each other, then nodded. 

“Do you two need a ride home?” Takemi looked like she was asking against her will. “I heard you say something about a fight, and-”

“Thanks, Dr. Takemi,” Keiko said. “Hopefully we aren’t too far out of the way.”

===

_ Friday, August 26, Very Early Morning _

Keiko really wanted to dislike the doctor as she always had. Rarely was her gut this wrong about a person, but Tae, as she preferred to be called when she wasn’t in the office, seemed used to being misunderstood. 

“I’m stubborn,” she chuckled. “You know how many times I told my mom that all this wasn’t a phase?”

“Was it a phase?” Keiko raised an eyebrow.

“Fuck no,” she chuckled. “The only reason I haven’t gone with tattoos is that I’d scare my patients away. Looks like I already scared you away, at least.”

Keiko looked down. “I believed some of the rumors I’d heard.”

“Eh,” Tae shrugged, pulling into the spot in front of Makoto’s apartment building. “Even I believed most of those rumors until recently.” 

“What happened?” 

“Phantom Thieves,” Tae said. “Whose heart did they change for you?”

Keiko turned around and pointed at a snoring Makoto in Tae’s back seat. “I guess you could say one stole mine.”

“Okay,” Tae grumbled. “Out.”

Keiko grinned at the doctor. “What?”

“That was terrible,” she said with a light chuckle. “You two need to get some sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow night.”

Keiko nudged Makoto awake, hoping they could go inside and fall right asleep. It’d been an absurdly long day.

Unfortunately, Sae waited up for them. 

“It’s fucking 3 a.m.” She had darkly colored bags under her eyes. Sae must’ve gotten off work on time. 

‘Hell of a greeting, Sae-san,’ Keiko thought. She didn’t dare say that thought out loud. “I know.”

“You better have a grand excuse.” Keiko sighed because she knew Sae wouldn’t be angry much longer. The anger would be replaced with worry.

Keiko was quick to reply before Makoto did. “I passed out again.”

‘Called it,’ Keiko thought as Sae immediately shifted from severe anger to severe worry. 

“What happened?”

Keiko shrugged. “I don’t know. My mom gave me a drink and then-”

Makoto slapped her on the back of the head. “No jokes!”

“Fine,” Keiko said, not sounding unlike a child being scolded by her mother. “I was packing up some extra clothes and I decided to look out the window at my magnificent view of abandoned buildings and concrete. Next thing I knew, it was 2 a.m. and I was being hugged to death by your sister.”

Sae raised an eyebrow. “Did you have a dream again?”

Keiko could feel Makoto’s eyes burning a hole through the side of her head. She hadn’t explained just how much Sae knew. “I did have a dream, but it was different this time.”

“No Akechi?”

Keiko shook her head. “I didn’t recognize the visitors. I was in a completely different place.”

“That’s good,” Sae said. “You both desperately need a shower. You smell like cigarettes.”

Makoto ducked her head and did as she was told.

“You didn’t tell Makoto about the dreams?” Sae patted the seat next to her on the couch.

Keiko trudged across the room. “She knows about the dreams. She just doesn’t know I told you.”

“Why weren’t you allowed to tell me?”

“I don’t think it’s that.” Keiko yawned and stretched. She was extremely tired. “She has a lot more confidence than when it was just you two. Makoto doesn’t want your help.”

“Is she mad at me?” Sae sounded genuinely surprised.

“I don’t know if she ever stopped being angry,” Keiko said. A tired Keiko was an honest Keiko, she supposed. “You pressed the ‘useless’ button, and now she’s got no use for you.”

“I’m trying-” Sae hiccupped.

‘Oh no.’ Keiko’s mind raced. ‘Did I just make Sae cry?’

Tears never came. The elder Niijima swallowed the single hiccup. “I didn’t mean it.”

“Tell  _ her _ that,” Keiko practically spat, despite not meaning to. “Look, she’s her own person. I don’t have a problem with you. I regularly snap at people I care about,  _ just like you.” _ Makoto pointed out the parallels between Keiko and Sae at several points. Every time she did, Keiko would make a joke about Makoto wanting to date her sister, and then Makoto would pout. “You need to salvage your relationship with your sister before you end up like my mom, only worse. At least she has a husband who doesn’t love her to keep her company.”

They both heard the shower stop.

“I’m going to go take a shower, and then I’m going to pass out for a long, long time. I’m sure I’ll apologize for this conversation in the morning.” Keiko stood up and zombie-walked to Makoto’s room where she’d placed her things. Makoto exited the bathroom and Keiko took her turn wordlessly. She tried and failed to ignore the shouting, choosing to instead stay in the shower until it ended.

The sun shone through the living room window by the time Keiko finished. 

Sae was probably already pissed. Keiko took the risk of climbing into bed with Makoto, who murmured sleepily through crusty eyes and a sore throat. 

No point in sleeping alone after a night like that. 

===

_ Afternoon _

Keiko couldn’t apologize to Sae for her blunt explanation in the morning because neither she nor Makoto was awake until well after 12. It very well could have been Makoto’s first time sleeping in.

It turned out, it was, and it left Makoto in a freaked out daze when she woke up.

“I can’t miss school,” she said sleepily. “Sae will be so mad.”

“I think Sae’s already mad, babe,” Keiko woke up an hour before Sae did, brewing a pot of the nasty, cheap coffee Sae kept in the house. “And it’s August. No school.”

Makoto shook herself out of the daze after a brief bathroom break. “I really lost it on Sis last night.” It was unlike Makoto to slouch while sitting like she was. She sat in the same spot Sae did when they finally returned home that night.

“You did,” Keiko said. She left her coffee at the table, not quite worrying about its warmth at the moment. She walked over to the couch, and grabbed Makoto’s hand, pulling her to her feet. 

“What are you-”

Then Keiko stole her seat. “Lay down.” 

“I don’t see-”   
“I always feel better when you just let me lay here with my head on your lap,” Keiko said, attempting a warm smile. Her own life still felt in shambles, but she could help Makoto, maybe. “I can return the favor.”

“I just woke up,” Makoto protested, then did as she was told. 

Then she just laid there, having her back rubbed by her girlfriend, her breaths matching Keiko’s after a few minutes. Keiko looked down a few times to check if Makoto was awake. She was.

“Typically when you do this, I talk about whatever’s bothering me,” Keiko said lightly.

“Just let me enjoy this.” Makoto took a deep breath.

“Take your time.” Keiko instead focused on the feeling of Makoto’s back under her fingers. Makoto still wore a shirt, but Keiko found her smooth skin remarkable, in a way. She half expected winces as she explored. Keiko assumed Phantom Thievery meant taking some hits. Instead, Makoto would occasionally mew in satisfaction if Keiko hit a spot that maybe needed scratching, or somewhere that felt particularly sensitive. 

“Do you want to lay on your stomach?” Keiko still spoke quietly. “I can do a better job that way, maybe.”

“‘Mkay,” Makoto said. Keiko silently celebrated her girlfriend’s happy tone. She scooted down the couch, allowing Keiko to sit on the outside edge of the couch while Makoto laid face down on the inside.

It was then that Keiko realized she had no idea what she was doing, and giving somebody a massage was a lot more intimate than she was ready for. ‘No time like the present,’ she told herself, but that didn’t stop her heart from racing. She went to work kneading her fingers against Makoto’s back, both cursing and celebrating that she was wearing a shirt. 

Keiko took no surprise that Makoto was tense, but she was shocked at how narrow her waist was when she laid face down. ‘She wears a halter for her school uniform,’ Keiko chided herself. ‘How am I just noticing this now?’ She was broken out of her thoughts when Makoto  _ moaned, _ and Keiko had to deal with a type of warmth different than she normally received from close contact with her girlfriend.

“You’re extremely talented,” Makoto said, her voice a bit muffled by the couch pillow her face rested on. 

Keiko tried to take the compliment without admitting she didn’t know what she was doing, instead opting to work her way down to the small of Makoto’s back, her fingers nearing the hem of Makoto’s sleep shirt. Keiko didn’t intend to work her fingers under the girl’s shirt.

Makoto jumped the second Keiko’s fingers came into contact with bare skin. She was sitting up within seconds, her eyes meeting Keiko’s. An unanswered question hung in the air.

That unanswered question made Keiko feel obscenely disgusting, so she changed the subject. “Are you hungry?” ‘Did my voice just crack?’ “I’m hungry.” ‘It did.’ “We should go get food.”

Makoto must’ve been just as unsure of herself as Keiko. She went and dressed while Keiko showered and did the same. Makoto sat on the couch, where minutes before Keiko learned there was more to pleasing a woman than just sex. She couldn’t place the look Makoto was giving her, but it kind of felt like lust.

It was definitely lust, she decided, and she must’ve been returning the look because Makoto awkwardly shifted in the seat instead of urging their departure like she typically did.

It took Keiko a few seconds of staring to realize why Makoto wasn’t standing up. 

“Are you wearing a crop top?” Makoto wore an unbuttoned collared shirt and a crop top under it, and tight black pants. It wasn’t an outfit Keiko knew she owned.

“I wanted to look cute,” Makoto said quietly. “Ann and Shiho swore I looked amazing in this but I just feel kind of silly.”

Keiko would admit to already being a bit wound up from having her hands all over Makoto’s bare skin, albeit briefly, for the first time, but she thought Makoto looked breathtaking in the new outfit. It was a departure from her usual look, and definitely had Ann’s fingerprints all over it- ‘I just accidentally made myself jealous.’ She let out a breath, hoping it would calm her nerves.

“You look beautiful, Mako,” Keiko said. Then she grinned. “I’ll have to thank Ann for finally getting you okay with showing off your abs.”

Normally, that kind of comment would have flustered Makoto at least a little, but she must’ve been feeling more confident. “You should,” Makoto said. “Her and Shiho wouldn’t shut up about it.”

“I’m just jealous you’ll listen to them, and not me,” Keiko mock pouted.

Makoto took her seriously, though, and looked away. “You have to feel that way.”

“Do I?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. ‘Maybe I can prod just a little…’ “Why do you think that?”

Red cheeks told Keiko that Makoto had something on her mind. She felt her own cheeks heat up in response. “It’s just, we’ve been together for a couple months now and I-”

“I couldn’t imagine my life without you, either.” Keiko probably spoke a bit too quickly. 

Makoto nodded nervously. “Yes. That, exactly.”

“We should go get some food before we both starve,” Keiko stepped over and grabbed Makoto’s hand, pulling her to her feet, making a show of checking her out. 

“Take a picture,” Makoto huffed. “It’ll last longer.”

“Eh,” Keiko chuckled. “I’m content to stare.”

“I’d call you a pig,” Makoto returned a small laugh. “But I think I like the way you look at me.”

Keiko’s cheeks could have lit the planet when Makoto groped her ass on the way out the door.

Their abbreviated Friday had been the most carefree fun they’d had as a couple. Makoto was a strange combination of embarrassed for showing so much skin, confident because of how good she looked with that much skin showing, and jumpy for reasons Keiko didn’t know how to explain. If she were being honest, she was feeling a bit jumpy, herself. Regardless, this all made Makoto extremely easy to tease. 

It was a shame they had to make an honest attempt at hiding their relationship in public. Keiko was enough of a public figure that she was getting recognized by strangers, and Makoto knew from personal experience with one of her senpai that Shujin wasn’t down with same-sex relationships. It might get better now that Kamoshida was rotting in jail, but she didn’t know for sure. Regardless, it was in their best interest to come off as platonic friends.

If anything, it made their mutual attraction all the more unbearable. It got worse when Eiko Takao exited a shop with her boyfriend, who Keiko recognized from Ohya’s covertly taken photos. 

“Prez!” Makoto practically jumped as she and Keiko made their way towards the arcade. “Hey!”

Keiko wasn’t one for ‘polite society’ style judgment, but Eiko and her boyfriend plowed through the crowded Central Street to make their way towards Keiko and Makoto and it was more than a little embarrassing. 

“Hey, Mako-chan,” a tall man dressed like a flashy yakuza in that game Futaba kept begging Keiko to play greeted them. “Who’s your friend?”

Somehow, Keiko was positive she didn’t want this man knowing her name. She put on an accent and started to give a random name when Eiko blurted her name out.

“You’re Keiko Miyahara, right?” She said stupidly. Keiko wanted to punch her stupid face. 

Makoto tried to keep from laughing while her girlfriend stewed next to her.

“That’s me,” Keiko grumbled. “Nice to see you again, Takao-san.”

“Oh, please,” Eiko said. “Any friend of Makoto’s isn’t a friend of mine! I bet she told you all the dirt.”

Keiko decided to make the best of it.  _ “Oh, yeah. _ She gave me  _ all _ the dirt.” Makoto rolled her eyes at the exaggerated valley girl accent Keiko put on.

“She wouldn’t tell me a thing!” Eiko’s voice was far too loud. It was obviously a point of contention. “Rumor has it at that Ren-kun is hung like a-”

“Isn’t your boyfriend literally right there?” ‘Jesus,’ Keiko thought. She’s either bold or stupid. That wasn’t the kind of conversation for a public place, or well, anywhere, honestly. 

“Huh?” The man got broken out of his trance. He had a sleazy look on his face, and he must’ve been busy ogling a woman passing by. “What’s goin’ on, princess?”

“Oh, nothing,” Eiko said in a sing-songy voice. “Just talkin’ shop with the girls, right?”

“Right,” Keiko said. She turned to Makoto with a sly grin. “So, are the rumors true?”

Makoto practically shrieked. “Why would I know that?”

“You can’t just ask Prez that, Keiko-chan,” Eiko chided. “You’ve got to ease her into conversation. I’m her best friend. I know these things.”

Keiko couldn’t hold back a snort but she was able to play it off as a cough. “Are you guys busy? We were just about to go play some Gun About-”

“Prez plays video games?” Eiko looked shocked. “This, I have to see. Tsukasa!”

The man, Tsukasa, apparently, broke out of his favorite hobby: ogling every woman who walked by. “What’s up, princess?”

‘Princess,’ Keiko said. Not rolling her eyes was the hardest thing she ever did. ‘Stupid bastard doesn’t even know her name.’

“We’re gonna play a game at the arcade. Wanna come?”

“Oh, princess,” he said. “If you want to, but doesn’t that seem like a kid thing?”

“Well, we are kids,” Keiko said with a small chuckle. “It makes sense we want to do ‘kid’ things.” 

“Okay,” Tsukasa nodded. “That makes sense. You’re smart. I feel like I’ve seen you somewhere before.”

“She’s on TV, Tsukasa!” Eiko reminded him. “Remember that pretty girl that hates cops?”

“Dude! I don’t hate cops!” Keiko had to break character a little bit. “That gets blown  _ so _ out of proportion.” 

“Oh!” Tsukasa took another look at Keiko. “I can’t believe I didn’t recognize you.”

“Oh, joy,” Keiko mumbled. They headed into the arcade. 

Watching Makoto get into Gun About almost made Keiko’s poor company worth it. Almost.

“So, you do anything else besides talk shit about the cops on TV?” She gave Tsukasa credit. He didn’t hit on Keiko in front of Eiko. He waited until she was as into the game as Makoto to make a move.

“I’m a writer,” Keiko said. “I run a newspaper.”

“That’s pretty cool, Miya-chan.” Keiko winced at the nickname, but she didn’t correct him. She anticipated this being the last time she’d ever have to deal with him. 

“It’s hard work, but it keeps me busy, and you know, somebody’s gotta keep the world informed,” Keiko said, because maybe she could change a heart on her own, without the help of the Phantom Thieves. 

“Don’t you ever get tired of workin’ so hard?” He raised an eyebrow at her, and she immediately knew she  _ wouldn’t _ be helping this much older, much larger man that the truth shall bear all light. “You could make a killin’ in Shinjuku, especially now.”

“Uh,” Keiko shrugged. “That’s not really my thing.”

“Come on,” he urged. “I could help ya.”

“Hey, Makoto,” Keiko said, ignoring him. “Tsukasa said he’d like a turn.”

“Huh?” She broke out of the trance the game held her in. “But I’m about to-” She saw the look in Keiko’s eyes. “Okay.” She handed the light gun to Tsukasa, who definitely had no interest in playing. To his credit, he did play a couple rounds with Eiko. If he weren’t such a creep, it would have been kind of cute. It wasn’t long enough for Keiko to have a private conversation with Makoto. They instead communicated through text. Tsukasa technically hadn’t done anything besides make Keiko uncomfortable, which Makoto pointed out was something basically every human being on the planet was guilty of at some point or another. That didn’t mean Keiko didn’t have a plan, though.

They left the arcade and tried to bid the overly-friendly couple adieu when Keiko asked Tsukasa a simple question.

“Really quick, Tsukasa,” Keiko said. “What’s your girlfriend’s name again?”

Makoto immediately gave Eiko a hushing look.

“What you mean? She’s my princess!” Tsukasa protested, but he didn’t answer the question.

“I know,” Keiko said, trying to keep her grin from growing. “But what’s her name? You call her princess, but you never even call her by her name.”

“I can’t believe this-” Tsukasa started to argue with Keiko before Eiko interjected.

“What  _ is _ my name, Tsukasa?” 

He glared at Keiko.  _ “You cunt!” _ He cocked a fist back, and Keiko waited for it to come forward.

Makoto acted before Keiko could, catching his arm the second it came forward, twisting it behind his back.

“Prez! What the hell are you doing?” Keiko noticed Eiko seemed more upset at Makoto than Tsukasa.

“Letting him keep his arm as long as he promises to leave my friends the fuck alone,” Makoto said through gritted teeth. 

“Agh!” The man grunted. “Fine!”

Makoto let go, and the man stormed off.

“Tsukasa!” Eiko called after him and started in his direction, but he returned a middle finger.

“Not worth it, kid!” He shouted back. 

“Eiko, I’m sorry but he-” Makoto wouldn’t get to finish her apology.

“You ruined my one chance at happiness!” Eiko would have slapped Makoto, if Keiko didn’t grab her arm.

“She nearly broke your ex-boyfriend’s arm. You think this ends well for you?”

It probably looked pretty bad for both Makoto and Keiko that a young girl sprinted away from them at full speed through Shibuya.

===

_ Saturday, August 27, Evening _

If Keiko hadn’t already been dreading their off-the-record appointment with Dr. Takemi, the added gratefulness Keiko felt from Makoto’s defense against Tsukasa had her in a completely different frame of mind than necessary for an appointment with a shady-but-less-shady-than-expected doctor. She consulted Futaba, who told her she’d been bitten with the lust status effect, and Keiko had no idea what that meant. 

Tae’s borough of Setagaya wasn’t all that far from her office in Yongen-jaya, and Keiko and Makoto exchanged looks as they neared it for a few different reasons. The first reason that crossed Keiko’s mind was just how out of the way Tae went to make sure they made it home safely Friday morning. They’d both felt more than guilty enough with how they judged the doctor, but knowing she went that far out of her way for two practical strangers, including one that assumed she would be missing her liver, was just piling on.

They also noticed the shabby nature of this particular neighborhood. Most of the apartment buildings looked to be public housing, and the tents scattered on the sidewalks told Keiko that things hadn’t always been this way. 

“Are things going this poorly in Tokyo?” Makoto gave Keiko a worried glance. “Why is a doctor living in a neighborhood like this?”

Keiko often made note of the grey concrete outside her bedroom window being a drab eyesore, but at least it wasn’t covered in graffiti. At least the windows weren’t broken out, and at least the facade in front of it didn’t have homeless people trying to sell silverware stolen from restaurants at a “deeply discounted price.”

‘Eyes forward,’ Keiko thought. She’d lived in neighborhoods similar to this as a child, and that was always her mother’s advice. ‘Focus on your destination, and don’t give off any aura that you might not know what you’re doing.’ “Just keep walking, Mako,” Keiko said, checking the address on the piece of paper. They reached a run-down home that Keiko would have mistaken for a crackhouse at any other time. 

“This is it,” Keiko said, stepping forward towards the house. 

“Does she really live here?”

“She’s sticking her neck out for us,” Keiko chided. “We’re not here to judge.”

“I’m not judging, it’s just…” Makoto trailed off. “I assumed a doctor would be making enough money to live somewhere safer.”

“Maybe she  _ is _ safe,” Keiko said. They stood on the front porch. “Poor neighborhoods don’t mean dangerous neighborhoods.”

“Right.” Makoto knocked on the front door, and the doctor answered. 

Keiko tried to ignore the smell of smoke wafting through the air. The scent was different from cigarette smoke, Keiko though. It reminded her of a skunk. 

Tae welcomed them in, apologizing for the smell. “Sorry. Neither of you,” she let out a small cough, “seem like you’re not used to weed, but I doubt I can talk about this sober.”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “You sound like Ohya.” 

“Dunno who that is, kid,” Tae said, ushering them through a mudroom filled with old tools and trash and into a living room that was shockingly nice. The decor was a tad outdated, but Keiko didn’t think wood panel walls looked as shabby as others might, and the wood floors were well taken care of. The furniture was dated but in good shape. It was clear Tae hadn’t pulled them out of a dumpster. “I keep the front looking like the rest of the neighborhood, in case you’re curious.”

Keiko had been caught taking stock, apparently. “That’s smart.”

“Yeah,” Tae chuckled. “I’ve been told I’m smart before. Go ahead and take a seat.”

The two girls took a seat next to each other on the couch while Tae practically fell back into her easy chair. The living room shared an open space with the kitchen, which was dated but had the old appliances from the days when they lasted forever. 

“So, what was so frightening that we can’t talk about it in the office?” Keiko tried to avoid thinking about her close proximity to Makoto. Keeping her mind straight had been a struggle. 

She could tell Tae was trying to steel herself like she was going to break horrible, awful news. “I’ve seen your symptoms before in an old medical journal that has since been redacted,” Tae said. “I found my copy of it this morning.” She picked up a book from the coffee table, an old-worn piece of wood that was probably upscale when it was purchased. It had stains from drinks and ashtrays from years of use. Tae opened the page and started reading from where she had her bookmark placed. “This is an editorial, not exact research,” Tae warned. “But the author died via shady circumstances soon after, and if  _ anyone _ finds out I have a copy even of this letter, I’ll be in danger.”

Keiko and Makoto shared a look, then nodded at the doctor together.

“Alright then.” Tae took a deep breath.  _ “A series of strange incidents have come across my desk recently from medical professionals, rather than the typical clinical psychologists. I write this in the form of a letter because frankly, I am unsure if the style typical of my research would be considered professional enough for a medical journal.  _

_ My name is Wakaba Isshiki, a cognitive psience researcher with the Department of Mental Wellness, a little-known branch of the Department of Public Health that rarely sees much in the way of publicity. A Dr. Oyashi from the Tokyo University Medical Center reached out directly in concern of one of his patients, a young college student interning with a local police precinct, turned up unresponsive one morning.” _

Keiko shifted uncomfortably in her seat among brief glances from Makoto. 

_ “I have since interviewed multiple people close to her, each describing strange behaviors throughout the days prior to her hospitalization. Their names have been redacted for privacy purposes, as they are still in mourning and even interviewing them, I felt a particular sort of guilt.” _

“In case you’d like to know,” Tae said, interrupting her reading. “I was one of the people interviewed.”

“You met Wakaba?” Keiko hadn’t meant to ask that out loud.

“Let me finish reading,” Tae said.  _ “The patient was described as previously described as an intelligent, vibrant young woman excited to begin an internship with the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. It had been her dream since she was a child to become a commissioner.” _

Tae rolled her eyes. “I still can’t believe I was best friends with a cop.” Keiko absent-mindedly grabbed Makoto’s hand, rubbing her thumb in circles around the outside as Tae continued.

_ “The morning of October 2, she showed up to work in a state similar to those who suffered from Apathy Syndrome, the infectious behavioral disorder that spawned the creation of my department. Dr. Oyashi described her as behaving as though she had received a lobotomy, although he found no evidence of incisions. Upon further testing, it was found that her brain activity was almost zero. It functioned at a level that was just enough to keep her alive. Within days, bodily functions started to shut down as her will to live vanished. Her roommate, a medical school student, found her unresponsive the morning of October 4th.”  _

Keiko swore she heard Tae’s voice break.

_ “This is where my research comes in. Here at the Department of Mental Wellness, we focus our research on a manner similar to that of the works of Carl Jung. It’s as ridiculous as it sounds, and had I not been given firsthand accounts from those who inadvertently experienced meetings with their inner self, I would dismiss all of this without a second thought. Before the alarm bells go up for you, as they did me, we do not rely on the classifications of personas for our research as was attempted in Europe in the 1930s.” _

“What?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. “What do the Nazis have to do with this?”

“The Nazis  _ loved _ Carl Jung.” Tae chuckled. “It’s all nonsense. Lazy fascists love nonsense that tells them they’re superior to-” She paused. “You didn’t come here for a history lesson.”

“But-”

“Keiko, let her finish, please,” Makoto said. Keiko wondered if something about this story was hitting Makoto. 

_ “We spend a lot of time studying the concept of the inner, or true self. Our goal is to discover a consistent way to make contact with the true self in order to stem behavioral disorders, or distortions, at their root. It’s a utopian idea that is in no way practical for society as a whole, but we’ve found it can be useful for rehabilitation, on occasion.” _

_ “This is a lot, and as I warned earlier, I am not a writer, so I tend to get off-topic. I believe the young woman’s death is the product of somebody misusing my research. Based off what we have found, shadows, or a person’s hidden inner feelings, can be talked into submission. They are open to negotiation and healthy discussion, as strange as that sounds, but we are unsure of what happens when a shadow is destroyed. The will to live is a desire, and destroying a shadow rids a person of all desires. I fear that this young woman’s shadow was destroyed by an unknown enemy, and the purpose of this letter is to ask each and every one of you who read it to contact me if you suspect one of your patients is a victim. Thank you for reading my rambling, and apologies if it doesn’t make much sense.” _

Tae sighed. “I guess this is how you know you can trust me. I’d like to know what happened to my friend.”

“What was her name?”

“Why?” Tae gave Keiko a puzzled look.

“You think this is a mental shutdown, right?” Tae nodded to Keiko’s question. “And you think they’re going after me, right?”

Tae nodded again.

“These guys like to keep their victim’s names out of the papers if they can,” Keiko chewed the inside of her lip. “I have a lot of questions, and I’m going to need you to answer all of them as honestly as you can.”

“Go ahead.” Tae crossed her legs and folded her arms.

“I need her name and the day this journal was published.”

Tae thumbed through the journal to the front page. “Ayumi Nakagawa, 21-years-old, technically died of heart failure.”

“Any pre-existing conditions?”

Tae shook her head. “We drank and smoked a lot, but not enough to cause lasting damage. It was college, you know?”

“I get you,” Keiko said, drawing a look from Makoto that said ‘if you ever smoke, I will murder you.’ “Any known enemies?”

“None she’d give me the names of,” Tae said. “I, uh, tended to act as her enforcer.”

“Shocking,” Keiko deadpanned. “Any trouble at work? These cases often tend to be retaliatory. Look at Wakaba. What day was the journal published?”

“A little under a year later. August 19,” Tae said. Keiko’s phone buzzed.

“Can I check?”

“I could use a break, anyway,” Tae said.

“This probably won’t be a break,” Keiko looked down at her phone. She assumed it was Futaba, and it was.

**Alibaba:** Mom died Aug. 21. Same day I left the house.

**SendNews:** thanks

“Futaba said her mother died August 21,” Keiko relayed to Tae. “She listens in on my conversations sometimes.”

Tae looked furious. “You didn’t tell me-”

“She’s Isshiki’s daughter.” The doctor seemed to calm a little. “There’s nothing we’re saying here she doesn’t already know. Plus, she’s almost definitely already listening in on every conversation you’ve ever had. She’s a nuisance.”

**Alibaba:** I will not stand for this slander.

Keiko held her phone up for Tae to see, allowing her proof. 

“That is  _ so _ illegal,” Tae grumbled.

“Sure is,” Keiko grinned. “But it’s good for getting information I wouldn’t have otherwise. And she’s a good friend.”

“We need to get back on-” Makoto’s words were interrupted when a black-haired, stick-thin girl dressed in what was definitely Tae’s hand-me-downs walked through the door.

“You weren’t supposed to be home for-”

The girl looked furious at Tae. Keiko saw recognition glimmer in her eyes briefly. “They here looking for me?”

Tae stammered and glared at the girl. “What? Why would they be-”

“Then it doesn’t involve me, and I’m going to bed.” They heard  _ extremely _ loud music come from the back of the house. 

“Sorry, that’s just my-”

“That’s Fujinami,” Keiko gasped. “She disappeared months ago.”

Tae looked around, panicking. “I-.” Tae was a stuttering mess. “It’s her story to tell.”

“Will she tell it?” Makoto asked. “She sounded furious.”

“She’s always like that,” Tae groaned. “But, she’s not being given a choice. She lives here for free, and maybe her story helps you guys out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I nerded out over a line of dialogue in this chapter where Keiko says "you never even call her by name." Here's the note I left with that line.  
> "You don't have to call me darlin', darlin', but you never even call me by my name." The best country song ever written. The two guys who wrote the song, John Prine and Steve Goodman, went back years later and added lyrics to create the 'perfect country song.' Here are the lyrics they added:  
> "Ever since the dog got drunk and died  
> and Mama went to prison  
> There ain't nothin' round this farm that's been the same.  
> And you know when mom broke out last Christmas  
> She drove a goddamn getaway laundry truck  
> right into a train."  
> RIP John Prine and Steve Goodman, the only two country artists who were ever worth a damn.
> 
> Also, the romance in this chapter is so damn corny. My bad. 
> 
> I plan on updating this fic twice per week until it's over. I currently have up through Okumura's palace going through edits, although the draft is still pretty rough.


	18. The Girl from the Train Station

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CONTENT WARNING:  
> If you've read the preview chapter of my upcoming third fic (Death All Around Me), you'll recognize parts of this chapter. It's not exactly the same, but the elements are similar. This means:  
> \- Minor gore  
> \- References to parental abuse  
> \- References to self-harm  
> \- References to suicide  
> \- References to rape  
> \- References to an eating disorder? (this wasn't done on purpose, but upon rereading, it sure seems like that might be an accidental element)  
> Basically, anything involving Rio in this fic needs a giant content warning.

_ Saturday, August 27, Evening _

“Rio,” Tae knocked on the door and tried the handle. Keiko chuckled lightly when it didn’t budge. Being on this side of a parental obstacle was pretty amusing when the kid wasn’t hers. She glanced over at Makoto, had a brief thought wishing they could have a kid someday, then another thought about definitely never having that thought again.

A faint “fuck off” could be heard through the door. 

“Can you just do this  _ one _ thing for me?” Keiko didn’t expect to see Tae pleading with a kid. 

The “fuck off!” wasn’t faint this time, and the music got louder.

“That’s a non-starter,” Tae said, laughing to herself as she made her way back to her seat. 

“You seem to be taking it well,” Makoto raised a questioning eyebrow.

“I get what I deserve,” Tae chuckled. “I was worse as a kid.”

“She’s not your kid-”

“Fuck no!” Tae laughed. “She’s only like, 10 years younger than me. You really think I had a kid when I was 10?”

Keiko shrugged. “I don’t know your life.”

Tae rolled her eyes and shook her head. “I adopted her. We met outside the train station a few years back.”

“You just randomly adopted a girl you met at a train station?” Keiko didn’t know how much pushing she could get away with.

“I wouldn’t call it  _ random,” _ Tae said. “She ended up at my clinic one night a few months after running away from home. Your mom brought her to me, actually.”

The home shook from the sound of something making an impact on the ground. A shattering noise followed.

“If you were just going to tell them anyway, you might as well have just dragged me out of my room,” Rio grunted, slamming her bedroom door. 

To say this experience was profoundly awkward was an understatement. Makoto and Keiko both remembered Fujinami, but they didn’t exactly recall much about her. They knew she wasn’t this gaunt the last time they saw her, and she definitely wasn’t this rough around the edges. She desperately needed to wash her hair. She’d removed her long sleeve shirt in favor of a tank top after she returned home, and it now made sense why she wore long sleeves whenever she left the house. Her scar-covered wrists were thin enough that Keiko could have gripped them and had her fingertips touch. 

The missing teeth on the left side of her mouth was the most gruesome change in her appearance. It didn’t look like they rotted out.

“Are you going to ask me what happened, or just stare at me?” She huffed. “I’m already-”

“What happened to your wrists?” Keiko shot Makoto a look the second she opened her mouth.

Rio replied with some venomous sarcasm. “Well, when somebody gets really sad, sometimes they want to feel-”

“Rio, you don’t need to answer that question,” Tae said, glaring at Makoto. “How sheltered are you?”

“Excuse Makoto,” Keiko winced. “She genuinely probably doesn’t understand.”

“I’m not stupid!”

“Eh, in this case, you might be,” Keiko tried to get her to back away. “Fujinami-san-”

“Rio, please. I’d rather not share a name with my parents,” she said. 

“Can I try and explain vaguely? I won’t guess as to your situation.”

She sighed. “Go ahead. It’s whatever.”

“Okay, Makoto,” Keiko turned to her girlfriend. “Some people who suffer from severe trauma or depression, or both, will, on occasion engage in self-harm as a way of coping.”

Rio and Tae looked at each other, and then Keiko. Rio scoffed. “Did you read the dictionary definition or something?”

Keiko looked down. “Been there.”

“Shit.” The way Rio’s cheek moved as she toothlessly chewed on the inside was unsettling. “My bad.”

“It’s whatever,” Keiko shrugged. “I’m better now.”

“Good to hear.” Rio pulled up a kitchen chair next to Tae’s chair. There was an open seat next to Makoto, but she opted not to take it. “And sorry for being rude, Niijima. You couldn’t have known.”

“I should have been more tactful,” Makoto conceded. ‘No shit,’ Keiko thought. 

“Alright,” Rio sighed. “You want a story? I’ll give you a story. I don’t need to go into all the Kamoshida shit, right? You guys have that covered?”

“More than covered, I’d say,” Keiko said. “Unless you have something new.”

“Probably do,” Rio said. “Might be beating a dead horse, though.”

“You’re talking like you’re on record,” Keiko said. “Do you want to be?”

“Might as well.” Rio’s cheek did that  _ thing _ again. “If they haven’t killed you, I’m probably safe.”

“You’re really banking on that?” Keiko decided  _ not _ to tell her that she was basically living in fear.

“Not really sure I care if I die,” Rio shrugged, and gave a toothless grin. “Might as well go out in a blaze of glory.”

“Now  _ that’s _ something I can relate to,” Keiko grinned, looking at Makoto, who was giving her a dirty look. “Makoto can, too, she’s just choosing to be salty.”

Makoto rolled her eyes.

“Okay, so I’m serious when I say this is a long story. It’s not pretty, fun, funny, nothing like any of that.”

Keiko nodded.

Rio started unveiling her past, and how it related to Kamoshida: How he first spotted her when she was 12-years-old at a dinner honoring the gold medal-winning Japanese volleyball team; how he took her mother back to his hotel room after Rio sprinted away, out of the front door of a fancy hotel in Roppongi; how she ran into Tae; how Tae and Ayumi sheltered her until she had no choice but to return home; how her mother died of suspicious circumstances.

“Have-” Rio quivered, nearly in tears. “My mother had a heart attack. She was an athlete, too, and she was young. 32-years-old. Did you know heart attacks make you bleed tar from your eyes?”

“What?” Keiko didn’t know if it was her or Makoto that asked for clarification. It might’ve been in unison.

“Yeah,” Rio said. “We were eating breakfast. Mom wanted to call the cops. Dad warned her not to. Within a few minutes of calling, she was gone.”

Rio’s life spiraled further from there. Her father developed a drinking problem, their only money coming because Kamoshida would occasionally send him some to live on. He never once apologized for what happened to Rio’s mother. “I guess an apology would have been worse than not sending one. Why wish a peaceful rest upon a woman you took everything from?” Keiko had taken Makoto’s hand somewhere in the middle of the story. She was squeezing for dear life.

“Anyway, Kamoshida guaranteed my scholarship into Shujin. I pled with my dad. I’d go anywhere else. I’d sell myself in Shinjuku. I wanted to do anything besides get stuck in a school with that piece of shit. I hate him.”

“What did Kamoshida want with you?”

Rio scoffed, then laughed a long, sardonic, unhinged laugh. “You know what he told me?”

Tae was chewing her fingernails.

“With a little bit of effort, you might be as good of a lay as your mother.”

Keiko tried not to gag.

“So, around the time your stories started coming out, I got brave,” Rio said. “Getting everything you got out there while staying alive? Shit, I thought maybe I’d be safe. I thought that I could maybe come forward with what happened. I made a stupid decision. I tried to get my dad to come forward. I got him really drunk one night, that same day the Phantom Thieves sent their little calling card, and got him to call the police. I had him explain what happened to my mom, what he was doing to me, and I got them to create a report.”

Rio started shaking again as she retold what happened the next morning. Her father, hungover and filled with rage, turned on her that morning. That’s how she lost her teeth.

“The motherfucker could throw a punch, that’s for sure,” Rio said. “I’m lucky he missed the front teeth, I guess. You ever choke on your own teeth?”

Makoto gulped. 

“It’s not pleasant. That bottom part that’s normally attached to your gums is pretty jagged. It cut my throat up pretty good. Anyway, yeah. My dad was a piece of shit. He died the day after I filed the report. Wouldn’t you know it? His eyes bled the same black substance my mother did, but they had a different cause of death. At least a random brain aneurysm is plausible.”

“Why didn’t he confess-”

“He did. He confessed to everything, but it didn’t matter.” Rio choked on her words. “They didn’t take his confession on my parents, and I’d already run off before my dad died. I’m actually surprised they didn’t pin my dad’s death on me. I definitely had a motive. Whatever. I was already here.”

Keiko looked over to Tae, who had a pensive look on her face. “I’m so glad you sought me out that day.”

“I’m a miserable shit constantly,” Rio tried to smile at her guardian. “But I don’t thank you enough for being there.”

“What do you think happened to your parents?” Keiko already knew the answer.

“You’re my senpai, so you tell me,” Rio shot back.

“Mental shutdown.”

Rio took a deep breath and let it out. “Just like Ayumi.”

Nobody spoke for a long time. They sat in silence, Keiko hand in hand with Makoto. The sun went down by the time anybody spoke up again.

“My father died of a mental shutdown.”

Keiko stiffened in her seat.  _ “What?” _

Makoto nodded to herself. “I-” 

“You don’t want to believe it at first, right?” Rio nodded. 

“I didn’t have to see it. He was hit by a truck driver,” Makoto said. “But the driver-” she paused. “Sis has the hardcopy of the files in her room. There’s a photo. The driver oozing black tar, his head dead on the wheel.”

“Mako,” Keiko said.

“I should get you kids home,” Tae said. “I’ll drive you back. Rio, I’d like you to ride with us.”

“Whatever you say, Doc.” 

===

_ Sunday, August 28, Early, Early Morning _

‘At least Makoto’s heartbeat is steady,’ Keiko thought. Neither of them were going to sleep if Keiko took the couch. Was Sae home? Sure. 

If Sae didn’t want them sharing a bed, she’d have to say something. It wasn’t like either of them were in a mood good enough to perform any acts Sae would consider unbecoming. Tae opened the wound left by the death of her best friend, and the collateral ripped at the scars left by Rio’s parents and Makoto’s father. Keiko imagined none of them were sleeping well. 

And now she was throwing herself directly into a situation that would lead Makoto losing  _ another _ person to a mental shutdown if it didn’t work out properly.

It might not have hit Keiko if Rio hadn’t immediately texted her about it after they departed. Keiko stared at the text. If Makoto were awake, she’d admonish Keiko for having her phone in bed. She was asleep, though, and Keiko relished the feeling of the woman she… couldn’t live without holding her by the waist. 

**Rio:** I’m not telling you to avoid writing that story, but I have a bad feeling about this.   
****

**Keiko:** Me too.

**Rio:** At least we’re on the same page. 

**Keiko:** If you don’t mind, I’m going to run it by a reporter friend. I’ll be as vague as I can.

**Rio:** If she’s worth a shit, she’ll connect the dots. Don’t worry about it.

Makoto’s stirring was Keiko’s cue to put her phone away. She spent the rest of her night trying to figure out how she could sneak away in the morning without making it look like it was related to the events of the prior night: Keiko really did make plans with Ann that she didn’t want Makoto knowing about.

‘Wow, that really makes it sound like I’m cheating.’ Keiko turned over, partially trying to get more comfortable and partially wanting to face Makoto. She did eventually get to sleep.

===

_ Morning _

Keiko fired off a message to Ann as soon as she got off the train in Harajuku. Keiko struggled leaving the Niijima apartment with minimal interaction, but she didn’t want Makoto knowing about her plans for the day, or maybe it was better stated that she didn’t want Makoto knowing how nervous she was to be in a state of undress around her.

She knew there was no reasonable part of her that worried about Makoto seeing her in a bathing suit, but the unreasonable parts of her were firing on all cylinders, filling her brain with awful thoughts and leaving her unable to eat. She’d tried to scarf down some extremely plain oatmeal before she left, and it somehow made her feel even worse.

Her uneasy stomach was aided along by the severe anxiety and exhaustion that came from the discussion at Dr. Takemi’s home the night prior. Keiko liked to play a game guessing how many hours of sleep she’d received on days after she slept terribly. 

By the time Ann and Shiho called out to her, she’d settled on guessing she had three hours of sleep, given the dull, hangover-like throbbing in the front of her skull. 

Ann greeted her, but Keiko only grunted a response.

“Jesus,” Shiho poked Keiko’s forehead. “You awake in there?”

Keiko’s half-lidded eyes popped open for a second. “Nope.”

“No coffee?” Ann tried to hold back a laugh, but it came out like a giggle that didn’t suit her. 

“Didn’t have time,” Keiko mumbled. “Rough night.”

“Makoto keep you up all night?” Shiho said suggestively.

The banter woke Keiko enough that she could at least keep her mouth shut on what happened last night. “I wish,” she said, sighing. “Can’t talk. Need coffee.”

“And food, from the looks of it,” Ann said. “You look like hell.”

“And you’re bad at talking to women,” Keiko gave a grin that came off more as a sleepy smile. “But I do feel like shit. Thank you for noticing.” They made their way across Harajuku to a pastry shop Ann gushed about their entire walk over while Keiko and Shiho exchanged amused looks. Keiko decided she should be less judgmental. Ann’s obsession with sweets wasn’t much different than her own obsession with coffee.

Keiko didn’t want to admit Ann was right when she gushed about them having the best custard-filled donuts ever. Keiko didn’t even know custard-filled donuts were a thing that people ate. She was thinking too hard about not wanting to admit to Ann that it was delicious because Shiho noticed.

“If you’re thinking that we should’ve eaten after taking you on a bikini hunt, I had that thought, too,” Shiho said, grinning at the still-sleepy Keiko. “Ann didn’t trust you’d actually eat before coming out.”

“Oh, I ate,” Keiko said. “Or tried to, at least.” She took a long swig of her coffee. “I was trying to think of a good way to insult Ann while still admitting the donut was good, but I’ve got nothing.”

Shiho chuckled, and Ann gave a mock offended look. “You  _ must _ be tired if you can’t think of a snarky response.”

“Last night was a rough one,” Keiko said, meeting expectant looks from Ann and Shiho. “I can’t talk about it, nor do I want to. I asked you guys out because this was supposed to be fun.”

“You can’t just pretend-” Ann started to say but Shiho interrupted her.

“What’re you talkin’ about? I pretend I’m okay all the time,” she said. “You can’t even tell.”

Ann took a drink of whatever fancy coffee-adjacent icy beverage she purchased. Keiko didn’t ask what she was drinking because any coffee that required massive amounts of sugar and cream to drink wasn’t worth it, in her opinion. “Why are all the people in my life so gloomy?”

“Well, it all started when my school hired a new volleyball coach-”

“Shiho,” Ann sighed. “It was a rhetorical question. I was there.”

Shiho shrugged. “You asked.”

“Anyway, you’re outvoted,” Keiko said with a small laugh. “Shiho and I both agree that we can all pretend we’re having fun.”

Ann rolled her eyes. They left the bakery and started to stroll down the walkway between all the crazy, colorful shops that made up Harajuku. “You’re both ridiculous, and I don’t know why I thought I could handle this without Makoto here to babysit.”

“You should have more faith in yourself,” Keiko said. “Shiho’s harder to deal with than I am.”

Shiho snorted. “She’s got you, there. She’ll stick her nose in your business. I’ll stick my nose in your business and take a big whiff.”

“Dear god,” Ann said. “I am  _ not _ going to ask what you mean by that.”

“I think she’s coming onto you, Ann,” Keiko giggled.

They neared the store Ann intended to take them to only for Keiko to pull them behind a colorful stand where a young woman sold Chinese food. Standing in front of the store next to their target destination was a tall, brown-haired annoyance. 

“What is your deal?” Ann was being far too loud, and Shiho held her hand over her mouth to keep her from drawing attention. Given they were on the employee side of the stand, they’d already drawn some attention. The college-aged woman trying to sell Chinese food gave them a concerned look.

Keiko responded to her before she explained anything to Ann or Shiho. She was glad Shiho caught on to there being a situation.

“Sorry, ma’am,” Keiko said. “There’s a guy I’m trying to avoid and-”

She interrupted Keiko with a friendly smile and a soft voice. “You’re free to hide as long as you need.” 

“I could throw a crab rangoon at him,” Shiho suggested. 

“I’ve got some throwaways I burnt,” the attendant agreed. “Can’t sell ‘em anyway.”

“He’s a detective,” Keiko whispered, trying to silently urge Shiho to keep her voice down. “If we do something akin to assault, he’ll stick around investigating it all day.”

“How do you know that?” Ann raised an eyebrow. 

“Because he’s a pain in the ass,” Keiko said with a sigh. 

“He’s met Ann, right?” Shiho’s whisper brought the probing question of someone who might have an idea.

“He has,” Keiko said.

“He hasn’t met me, though,” Shiho said. She stood up.

“Shiho, what the hell are you doing?” Ann said, again, being far too loud. 

“Watch,” Shiho said with a grin, and made her way over to the tall, brown-haired dickhead loitering in front of the bookstore next to the store that had been Ann’s destination.

Keiko and Ann looked at each other. “Is she any good at this?”

Ann shrugged.

The woman attending the Chinese food stand lost her cool at something Shiho did, and Keiko peered around the corner.

“What do you mean you aren’t Light Yagami?” Shiho looked exasperated. “You can’t just dress like this in Harajuku and claim to not be a cosplayer!”

“I think that’s your cue,” the vendor said. Keiko and Ann walked casually past Shiho and her brilliant acting.

“I assure you, I am no cosplayer,” Akechi protested as Shiho got all up in his business, prodding at his jacket and getting far too close.

“You definitely are! You’re even carrying a black notebook!” Shiho was  _ right _ in his face.

“That’s because I’m a detective and  _ you’re impeding an important investigation,” _ Akechi’s normally calm voice shifted and Shiho took that opportunity to walk away. Ann and Keiko had ducked around the corner of the building they intended to enter so they could still watch.

Shiho let out a sigh. “Fine. Have a nice day, Yagami-san.”

“I, uh,” Akechi stammered. “I didn’t get your name.”

“You think I’m dumb enough to give you my name?” Shiho scoffed. “You’ll probably write it in that silly little notebook of yours and then poof, I’m dead. No thanks. See ya.” She mumbled as she walked off. “I’ve never met such a  _ rude _ street performer.”

Akechi stormed off in the direction opposite Shiho, mumbling something to himself.

“That was incredible,” Ann said as Shiho rejoined them.

“My years of watching your brilliant acting have paid off,” Shiho said sarcastically, earning a laugh from Keiko and an offended look from Ann. 

Their narrow escape from Akechi made finding a bikini seem like a much less harrowing task. Keiko was still exhausted, but Ann scrambled around the store and found one they all agreed was perfect. 

Now to actually wear it in front of a crowded beach, and perhaps more harrowing, Makoto.

===

_ Evening _

Keiko returned to an awkward situation at the Niijima apartment. Makoto and Sae were home alone for the first time since their fight two days ago. 

Neither of them knew how to move past it, although they  _ did _ manage to figure out that sitting in the same room was a good start. Makoto was reading a book on Norse mythology she’d stolen from Keiko’s bookshelf the last time she’d passed out. Sae was typing away on a laptop, nervously glancing at her sister every thirty seconds or so. It might’ve looked like a normal room to the untrained eye, but the tension created a heavy atmosphere that bore down Keiko’s shoulders the second she walked through the door. 

She wasn’t sure if she should be thankful for the anxiety she felt about her future state of undress disappearing because it’s vanishment was mostly related to the difficult situations she found herself in daily. 

It might’ve been less awkward had either of them greeted Keiko when she unlocked the door. She was instead met by the same awkward glance on two different, albeit similar faces. It actually freaked Keiko out. 

“You’re both making the same face,” Keiko said, laughing at both of them before taking a seat next to Makoto on the couch. “I take it you haven’t made up yet?”

“Why would we make up?” Makoto’s tone bit through the room. “We can just continue ignoring each other like we have for the last three years.”

Sae rolled her eyes, and went back to whatever she was working on. 

“Well, as long as you’re okay with that-”

“I don’t know how many times I can apologize!” Sae’s words cut right through Keiko’s. “I’m trying to do better.”

_ “You could have tried doing better when I couldn’t leave my bed for a month!” _ Makoto shot back. 

Keiko was torn between wanting to watch this play out and going to hide in the other room. She opted to stay, gazing out the window instead of looking at the arguing sisters. 

Sae shut her laptop loudly. “I didn’t know how to-”

“You stacked books outside my door and told me I didn’t have time to cry,” Makoto shot a glare at her sister. 

“I was just worried about your future-”

“My fucking dad just died,” Makoto shot back. “Sorry, I just  _ wasn’t in the mood to study.” _

“Right,” Sae said. It was unlike her to seem this downtrodden. “You’re right. I don’t have an excuse. I’m trying to be better.”

Makoto scoffed. “By doing what? Being all buddy-buddy with my girlfriend? How do I know you aren’t just using her to monitor my behavior?”

Keiko startled in her seat.

“I would never do that,” Sae said. “I trust you to be on your best-”

“Maybe don’t pull the best behavior card right now, Sae-” Makoto had already flown off the handle before Keiko could intervene.

“Why is everything about  _ behaving _ with you?” Makoto shouted incredulously. “Especially from you! You’re the only woman prosecutor in the whole country, and you’re so obsessed with behaving. If you really cared about behaving, you’d have a husband and a million kids.”

“Christ, Makoto-” Keiko tried to interrupt and was succinctly ignored.

“It’s the only admirable thing about you,” Makoto said. “Everything else is shameful. You’re just another prosecutor that cares about her record more than anything else. 99% prosecution rate, my ass. How many people have been wrongfully imprisoned because of you-”

“Mako!” Keiko gripped her girlfriend’s wrist, drawing her ire. “You need to stop.” Keiko froze, hoping she didn’t just draw a lecture of her own.

Instead, Makoto’s eyes softened as tears started to form. “I was never allowed to mourn.”

“Makoto, I’m sorry,” Sae interrupted them. “I don’t have an excuse for my behavior, but the only thing I can do is try and be better.”

“That’s acceptable,” Makoto said. She took a deep breath. “I’m sorry for yelling.”

“Let’s go try and relax,” Keiko said, grabbing Makoto’s hand. 

A few minutes later, they were both in their pajamas sitting on the floor in Makoto’s bedroom.

Makoto was practicing steady breathing in an attempt to get her heart rate down. Keiko mostly just sat there holding her hand, rubbing her thumb in circles around her girlfriend’s palm. 

“I’ve never  _ felt _ Johanna that much in the real world,” Makoto said after a few minutes, breaking the silence. 

Keiko gave a questioning look.

“I-” Makoto stammered. “This needs some explaining.” She took a deep breath. “On occasion, Johanna will talk to me-”

“Always knew you were nuts,” Keiko giggled, apologizing quickly under a glare.

“It’s mostly inane commentary. Like, if we’re covering her era in history, it feels like I know things I couldn’t possibly have known unless I was there.” 

Keiko nodded. It made sense.

“It was too much, tonight,” Makoto said. Her voice broke a little. “She  _ hates _ Sae.”

“I’d argue that you also hate your sister,” Keiko chimed in.

“I don’t hate my sister,” Makoto said. “It’s hard to explain what exactly Johanna’s problem is.”

“Well, Sae saying she just wanted you to behave seemed to be a trigger phrase,” Keiko said. “There’s a whole lot of feminist literature that complains about the idea that women should just behave, and your Persona represents a trailblazer.”

“Is it that simple?”

“Why wouldn’t it be?” Keiko shrugged. “I’m sure there’s some complications in there somewhere, but at its root, it makes sense. It also makes sense because I  _ absolutely _ don’t behave myself and you lo-like me a lot.” 

Keiko inadvertently turned her cheeks a bright pink, and Makoto’s took on a similar color.

“Yeah,” she nodded. “That does make sense.” Makoto blushed, and leaned into Keiko. “I was so nervous that night.”

“What night?” Keiko gave a cat-like grin, then leaned and pecked Makoto on the cheek. 

Makoto rolled her eyes. “Are you really going to make me say it?”

“I love hearing it,” Keiko said, the grin stuck on her face. 

Makoto sighed. “I’d been wanting to say something and couldn’t find the courage.”

“And Johanna gave you that courage?”

“I’d like to receive  _ some _ credit,” Makoto said. “But she played a part in it.”

“Well, tell Johanna I said thank you,” Keiko said, kissing her girlfriend on the cheek.

They sat in silence, just enjoying the presence of another person in the room.

“Do you think Sae will be okay?” Keiko broke the silence. 

Makoto shrugged. “Eventually.”

===

_ Monday, August 29, Afternoon _

“So, what’re the odds Ryuji leaves this trip early to get his jaw wired shut?” Shiho nudged Ann when she said it. 

Ann startled. She wasn’t paying attention and nearly tripped over a park bench on the sidewalk between the train station and the beach. “Pretty high,” she said after Shiho repeated herself. “It depends on who he drools over.”

“You should be used to it by now,” Shiho said with a chuckle. “I think he only needs to be worried if it’s either of you two.” She addressed Keiko and Makoto.

“Your fear is valid,” Keiko said. “If I so much as see him ogle Makoto-”

“What if they’re ogling you, though?” Ann said. “Shiho and I saw-”

“Nope!” Keiko immediately shut Ann down. “I don’t want to think about that right now.”

“You’re such a buzzkill,” Shiho chuckled. “You two are perfect for each other.”

Makoto wasn’t even paying attention to the conversation, her mind still squarely focused on her argument with Sae from last night. She’d told Keiko that morning that she was having trouble getting over it.

“She’s really out of it,” Ann said. “Did you guys keep each other up all night  _ again?” _

Shiho laughed while Makoto and Keiko looked at each other.

“We were actually both in bed at a decent time, for once,” Makoto said, ignorant of how it sounded, although the snickers died down quickly. “I had a fight with my sister last night. I said some pretty terrible things.”

“I don’t think anything you said was terrible,” Keiko said. “I think you’re largely in the right.”

“I could have been nicer, though,” Makoto shrugged. 

There was almost definitely a retort coming from Shiho but they’d reached the beach, and Keiko was too busy enjoying the sand between her toes to pay attention. 

“Why did it take me this long to come to the beach?”

“You’ve seriously never been to the beach before?” Makoto gave her an odd look. 

Keiko shrugged. “My parents were too busy to acknowledge my existence most of my life.”

“I’m putting a moratorium on depressing shit,” Shiho said.

Ann snorted. “Says the girl who’s refusing to wear any form of bathing suit.”

“Hey, man, I’ve kind of had some bad experiences with-”

“Right, Shiho,” Ann frowned. “Sorry. That was rude.”

“Damn straight it was. If I want to dress like a lesbian, I’m going to.”

“Uh, Makoto and I are both-”

“I realized it as soon as I said it,” Shiho sighed. “God damn it.”

“Are you sure you’re going to be okay?” Ann asked as they searched for a good, free spot to sit while they waited for the boys and Futaba. 

“I’m not allowing myself to not be okay,” Shiho said, determined. “I invited myself along. I’m not about to ruin everyone else’s good time because I’m a mope. ”

“Shiho, nobody is going to blame-”

_ “I said I’m not going to ruin everybody else’s good time, and that’s that,” _ Shiho said, biting Makoto’s head off. 

She was back smiling within seconds. “Besides, all the second years are going to Hawaii next week and I’d like to get over this hurdle while I’m still home.”

Keiko nodded, fully understanding.

Ann’s mention that everyone except her was still fully dressed was somehow more unsettling, as Keiko realized she would now be nearly naked in front of her girlfriend.

Makoto must’ve read her expression. “Keiko, you’ve seen me naked a hundred times.”

“Because you’re an exhibitionist!” Keiko shot back.

Her girlfriend flailed her arms in protest. “Am I supposed to change in a locker room without removing my clothes?” 

Keiko tutted. “You could at least have the decency-”

“Who  _ chooses _ to look, babe?”

Keiko paused, and made a fart noise with her mouth. ‘Defeated.’ “Me…”

“Stop feeling self-conscious,” Makoto said. “If you were going to scare me off, you’d have done it by now.”

Shiho burst out laughing. “I can’t believe I’m listening to Prez talk a girl out of her clothes.”

“That’s not what this is!” Makoto and Keiko both protested, but Makoto’s was louder. 

“Sure, Prez,” Shiho said, rolling her eyes. Meanwhile, Ann had already beaten everyone to undressing. “Showoff.”

“You’re just jealous,” Ann said. 

“Uh, I don’t think jealousy is an unreasonable emotion,” Keiko said, trying to keep her eying of Ann appropriate. “How do you stay in shape while eating so many sweets?”

Ann rolled her eyes. “Chasing Shiho around keeps me in shape. Shouting at her for being ridiculous is good for burning calories.”

“I just get credit for everything,” Shiho giggled. “The Phantom Thieves, Ann’s modeling career-”

“What about the Phantom Thieves?” Ryuji spoke  _ way _ too loudly as they approached.

Makoto immediately stuck a hand over his mouth and gave him a hushing look. 

“Ryuji, you  _ have  _ to be quieter,” Ren admonished. 

Morgana said something that made Ryuji’s face turn bright red, and he bolted away from the safety of Makoto’s hand-muzzle. 

“You better watch it, cat,” Ryuji said, prompting Morgana to mew incessantly.

“Where’s Futaba?” Keiko said, ignoring the argument this nearly grown man was having with a 20 pound cat. 

“I’m here,” she said. Futaba was hiding behind Ren and Yusuke.. 

“Futaba, you can’t just hide behind me all day,” Ren said with a light smile. “Isn’t this a celebration of you rejoining the world?”

“But I’m barely wearing any clothes!” Futaba whined.

“I relate heavily to Futaba’s plight,” Keiko said. “Makoto is trying to get me to take my clothes off.”

_ “I’m trying to get you to behave like a normal, beach-going human,” _ Makoto grumbled. 

“I’ll go get changed if Keiko gets changed first,” Futaba said with a trollish grin.

“Betrayal!”

“I will abandon my own comfort for the torture of others,” Futaba said snidely. “You knew this upon befriending me.”

“You creepily started texting my phone!”

“And you responded to the creepy random messages!”

Keiko huffed, deciding to ignore the victim-blaming. “Fine. Jerk.” She marched her way to a changing tent mumbling to herself. Keiko wasn’t even sure what she was worried about. Compared to Ann’s bikini, she was dressed conservatively. As she got dressed, she noted how much she really did like the bathing suit that was picked out for her. The top and bottom were both blue, and the top covered her chest entirely. It left her midriff bare, which was uncomfortable, but not as uncomfortable as it would have been months ago. Plus, it was hot out. The shorts weren’t even outrageously skimpy. They were similar to the ones she wore to work out in.

She left the tent feeling much better about her outfit. She halfway expected to feel worse when she rejoined the group, and she probably would have had she noticed some of the stares she was getting from passers by. The only one Keiko noticed was Makoto’s.

“Hey, Queen,” Ryuji nudged Makoto. “You okay in there?” 

Makoto shook her head. “Yeahfinegreat,” she said with no gap between the words.

“I think you broke Makoto,” Ren laughed.

“Did he call her Queen?” Keiko was too busy focused on that part of it.

Makoto blushed furiously. “He might have-”

“It’s her code name,” Ann said. “I’m surprised she hasn’t told you about it.”

“Good to know,” Keiko grinned. “I’ll have to make use of it.” 

Makoto and Futaba made their way towards the tents. 

Ryuji leaned in and talked quietly, probably so Ann couldn’t hear and make fun of him. “Is that really the first time Makoto’s seen you, uh, you know.”

Keiko nodded, and Ryuji grinned and held out a fist. Keiko bumped knuckles with him.

“You knocked it out of the park, then.” His smile was surprisingly friendly. She didn’t know Ryuji all that well, and if she’d believed Ann, he was a giant perv. “I’d be terrified for somebody to see me like that the first time.”

“Ryuji, we’ve all seen you shirtless,” Keiko said, rolling her eyes.

He shrugged. “Yeah, but it’s not somebody you’re  _ with _ seeing you for the first time. I bet that’s different.”

“Huh,” Keiko said. “I suppose you’re right.” She was surprised at the insight coming from Ryuji, of all people.

“Don’t sound so surprised,” he said with a chuckle. “I’m smarter than I-” Morgana meowed something. “You effin’ cat!” He took off, sprinting after Morgana, who scrambled for his life.

Keiko couldn’t hold her laughter. She laughed harder when Yusuke ran after them, trying to get them to stop so he could draw them.

And then Makoto returned in her white bikini top and matching skirt, and Keiko’s brain stopped working for a while.

It started working again when Shiho smacked her on the back of the head. “Eyes up, soldier.”

“Uh,” Keiko grinned sheepishly. “Was I staring?”

“If you stared any harder, your eyes would have fallen out,” Ren said. 

Keiko shrugged, then walked over to Makoto and put her arm around her, pecking her on the cheek. “I’m allowed to stare.”

“I think we’re all allowed to stare,” Shiho said. “Not everyday you meet a superhero.”

Makoto protested “I’m not a superhero!”

“Pro wrestler?” It was evident by Shiho’s grin that she was going to keep going. 

“I’m not that either,” Makoto said, frustrated.

“Okay, fine. MMA fighter?”

They were interrupted when Futaba came out of the tent with her towel wrapped around her head to hide her face. It would have been funny if she didn’t fall face-first into the sand after tripping. 

“At least sand is soft,” Ann said, trying to help Futaba to her feet. 

“Futaba, you can’t have a towel around your face,” Ren said. Futaba could probably hear the amused smile in his voice. 

“Yes-” Futaba was obviously struggling to breathe. “I can!”

Keiko pulled at one of the loose strands of the towel, unwinding it from around her face. “You were going to suffocate.”

“Traitor.”

“Eh,” Keiko shrugged. “You’ll thank me later.”

Futaba looked around at the group after adjusting her glasses. “Holy shit!” She exclaimed when her eyes reached Makoto. “You could be a bad guy on Featherman.”

“Is that a compliment-”

“It’s a compliment, Mako,” Keiko said.

===

_ Evening _

“I’m just saying I’m concerned, is all,” Keiko argued with Makoto. They’d returned home from the beach within the last half hour, and something Makoto said had Keiko wound up. “There’s no way he’s going to be able to properly care for Leonardo Da Pinchy or Carl Crabstein!” She was quite proud that Yusuke let her name one of the lobsters. 

“It’ll be good for him to learn some responsibility,” Makoto said. “Maybe once he has to keep someone else fed, he’ll learn to feed himself.”

“He can’t even afford a case!” Keiko argued back. “We should have at least gone with him to a pet store to buy something safe to keep them in.” It was very important to Keiko that she got to see Carl again. 

“It’s very strange that I’m sitting here half naked and your focus is your concern over Yusuke’s crabs.”

They were sharing the bed, both still a bit chilly from their day in the ocean although the shower they each took after returning home seemed to warm them up some. Makoto opted for a partial state of undress, choosing to wear shorts and a sports bra instead of her usual sleep shirt. Keiko tried to ignore it because seeing Makoto in a bathing suit all day had her feeling things she didn’t know she could feel.

Keiko shrugged. Makoto was big spoon, so her arms were around her waist. “It’s not like I can see you from this angle,” Keiko said.

“Who’s fault is that?” Keiko could practically feel Makoto’s eyes rolling through the back of her head. 

“But I’m cozy.” 

Makoto’s phone buzzed and Keiko was cozy no longer.

“Hello?” Makoto answered the phone in a confused tone. She must not have recognized the number. “Are you serious? Of course, I’d love to go.” The shift towards happiness had Keiko curious what the call was about. “I’ll have the proper forms to you once we’re back in school on Monday. In fact, I have some business there tomorrow, so I’ll slide it under your door. Thank you, Kawakami-sensei!”

That made Keiko’s ears perk up. “What was that about?”

Makoto made no attempt to hide her happiness. “Know how the second-years are going to Hawaii next week?”

Keiko’s heart soared. “Are you really going?”

Makoto nodded excitedly. “As a chaperone. They needed some teachers to stay behind because there’s going to be a police presence at the school.”

“Over what?” That was almost as exciting to Keiko as finding out Makoto was going.

“If I had to guess? They’re looking into the Phantom Thieves.”

“Good thing you’ll be in Hawaii, then,” Keiko responded with a grin. “Think we could get Becky to let us share a room?”

“Not if you keep calling her Becky,” Makoto said with a chuckle. She climbed back into bed, and they both actually got a good night of sleep for the first time in what felt like months, because swimming in the ocean is exhausting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I checked my docs and realized I wrote this chapter nine days ago. So, I'm going to start posting chapters of this fic twice, maybe 3 times per week because life is hard and the dopamine rush I get from seeing new comments, kudos, bookmarks and subs might be all that's keeping me going. 
> 
> It's weird going back to this chapter because I've been working on writing the Hawaii and Okumura arcs, and neither of them is as dark and dreary as this chapter. There are elements, sure. But not to this level.


	19. The Heiress

_ Tuesday, August 30, Afternoon _

Keiko planned to check the school for Haru Tuesday afternoon anyway, so when Makoto wanted to fill out her field trip forms, she thought it was a good way to get “two birds stoned at once.”

Makoto did not like Keiko’s wording, was adamant that she changed it to the proper use of the cliche, and wouldn’t speak to Keiko when she refused. It would have been annoying, Keiko thought, if it wasn’t so adorable. 

“You’re supposed to be a representative of the Shujin Academy Gazette,” Makoto lectured. “You should clean up your language, at least when we’re on school property.”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “I forgot you get like this when we’re at school.” She was more amused than annoyed. 

Makoto put her hands on her hips after they entered the building. The doors were unlocked, so there were a few members of the staff around. “What exactly is  _ that _ supposed to mean?”

“You’re doing it again,” Keiko chuckled. “Miss President, the shining example of a Shujin student. Or should I call you Queen?”

“Stop,” Makoto blushed furiously at the use of her code name.

“Stop what?” Keiko raised her eyebrows. “Aren’t you just the Queen of Shujin? I could call you Your Majesty.” Another light bulb went off in Keiko’s head. “I could get you a robe and a crown!”

“You wouldn’t dare…”

“I wouldn’t?” Keiko grinned. “Are you sure I wouldn’t dare? I bet Shiho would have a few ideas, too.”

“Are you planning a monarchical overthrow of the student council?”

Keiko nearly jumped out of her shoes as a soft voice greeted from behind, then glared at Makoto when she started laughing. 

Haru giggled. “I’m not scary!” 

“No, but you’re sneaky,” Keiko huffed. “I thought  _ I _ was the snoop.”

_ “A good little girl is seen and not heard,” _ Haru said, obviously quoting somebody in her life. If Keiko had to guess, it was probably her father. “You get really good at sneaking around when corporal punishment is the only other option.”

“Seriously,  _ everyone _ I make friends with has fucked up parents,” Keiko said, then she shook her head. “Sorry, that’s insensitive.”

Haru shrugged. “It is an interesting pattern, though.”

“What about Yoshizawa?” Makoto tossed out. “She’s got two parents.”

“Woo! I have one friend with two functioning parents!” Keiko mocked. 

Haru and Makoto shared a look. “Should we head to the roof?”

Makoto nodded. “Let’s go.” 

They made their way to the roof, with Makoto dropping off her field trip forms in the faculty office on the way. The doors were open, although there weren’t any teachers inside. 

Keiko couldn’t believe the garden Haru had growing on the rooftop. “How’d you get all this growing up here, of all places?”

“Oh,” Haru grinned. “Well, I was able to get Sakamoto-kun to help me bring all the soil up. I should have warned him how heavy it would be-”

“Ryuji could use the extra work,” Makoto said with a laugh.

“I didn’t realize you and Sakamoto-kun were good friends,” Haru said, raising an eyebrow.

“Friend of a friend, more like,” Makoto said coolly. Her acting had gotten better under Keiko’s tutelage. 

“Makes sense,” Haru nodded. “You two spend a lot of time around Amamiya-kun.”

“He’s my neighbor,” Keiko said. “His guardian is probably my favorite person ever.”   
Makoto cleared her throat. 

Keiko tapped her foot. “I know what I said. You still try and feed me instant coffee, therefore you have yet to surpass Sojiro.”

“You’re such a brat,” Makoto huffed. “Can we get on-topic?”

“It would be best if we did,” Haru said. “Although, I do enjoy asking questions that make you uncomfortable.”

“That’s supposed to be my job,” Keiko frowned. “We’re always looking for more reporters.”

“Maybe after we get rid of my father-”

“Uh, ‘get rid of’ sounds like we’re killing him,” Keiko said.

Haru shrugged. “We might be, inadvertently.” 

Keiko raised an eyebrow but didn’t ask a question.

“People with a conscience who get too close to my father’s business have a tendency to drop dead.”

Makoto and Keiko shared a look. “If you don’t mind me asking,” Makoto asked with some trepidation, “what are they dying of?”

“I have a theory, but typically the cause of death gets attributed to either a heart attack or an aneurysm, depending on the shape the person is in when they die.” It was so,  _ so _ strange hearing Haru’s soft, sweet voice explain something as dramatic as death. Her tone often betrayed her intentions. “You’ve no doubt made the mental shutdown connection in your own reporting.”

Keiko nodded. “I have. It’s really difficult to prove, though.”

“It’s supposedly impossible,” Haru said. “Although, there are other avenues for proof I can provide.” 

“Unless you have transcripts, e-mails, phone calls, and receipts for the specific shutdowns, I’m afraid there’s not much we can do,” Keiko said.

“You think so little of me,” Haru said, although the gleam in her eye told Keiko she wasn’t insulted. “That’s what I wanted to meet over. But first-” she dug through her backpack and pulled out an old analog tape recorder and another box that looked like it might’ve been bought in Akihabara, albeit Akihabara in 1987. 

“Is-” Keiko had to stifle a laugh. “Is that a beeper? Where the hell did you find a beeper?”

“My father is, perhaps not shockingly, extremely cheap,” Haru said. She wasn’t the type to grin, but it could be heard in her voice. “Beepers are surprisingly useful, untrackable, and it just so happens that he’s still paying for service on them.”

“Is this beeper on the same network as his cohorts?”

“I don’t know that for sure, but you mentioned a friend that knows their way around technology, and I thought that maybe…” Haru trailed off. “I didn’t think that one through. It could be ‘good with technology’ in the same way I have to help my dad figure out his phone.”

“You’re good,” Keiko couldn’t keep the smile off her face. “If Futaba doesn’t know, she’ll be able to figure it out. I do have a question, though.”

“Go ahead,” Haru said. 

“Where did you learn any of this?” Keiko then clarified. “Like, these tactics are surprisingly cutthroat. Aren’t you an heiress?”

“I was raised to take over my father’s company,” Haru said. “He assigned me a mentor from a young age, another young heiress who took over her father’s company at a young age and was far more successful than she had any right to be. Unfortunately, I was forced to cut ties with her after my father arranged my marriage, as I’m no longer in line to take over the company.”

Keiko frowned. “That’s sad.”

“It is what it is,” Haru said. “I’d be betraying her if I didn’t use everything she taught me to get ahead. Now excuse me, I really must tend to my garden.”

“Thank you for your help, Haru,” Keiko said. “I’ll get the tech to my friend. How should I reach out to you again?”

“I have purchased a burner phone,” Haru said. “I will be in contact when we need to meet. Are you both going to Hawaii?”

Keiko nodded. 

“I imagine we’ll be able to have a safer discussion there than here,” Haru said. “My apologies for throwing work into your vacation.”

“What’s a vacation? I’m gonna be stuck babysitting-”

“Mako-chan, be nice,” Haru said. Keiko caught a glint in her eye. “I bet you two find a way to have fun in Hawaii.”

“What are you implying?” Makoto asked darkly. Keiko’s eyes shifted around the rooftop.

Haru’s small smile took on an antagonistic nature. “You’ve never thought about the mile-high-”

“Okay!” Keiko interrupted. “We’ll get going now before you short-circuit Mako’s brain.”

Haru giggled, and they said their goodbyes. 

Keiko tucked the beeper into her backpack, and she and Makoto started their way downstairs to exit the school. They were stopped on the second floor by Kawakami.

“Hey,” Kawakami pulled Keiko into her room. Makoto followed, locking the door.

“Becky,” Keiko greeted, and Kawakami went white.

“Don’t call me that!” 

“Why not?” Keiko glared through the teacher. “Did you really recommend to  _ my mother _ that she sleep with Ren?”

“What?” Kawakami’s color returned, and she looked insulted. “I would  _ never _ do that!”

Keiko sighed. “Of course. Sorry, I should have known my mother was a liar.”

“Look, I only mentioned that I was grateful to him,” Kawakami sighed. “She reached out a couple of weeks ago and I explained I wasn’t working anymore.”

“Ren said you gave her a glowing recommendation.” 

Kawakami rolled her eyes. “God, I knew this was going to blow up in my face. He asked if I knew her, and I said she was a good time. He asked if she was clean, and I’m not about to tell him who he can and can’t get with. I assumed he knew she was your-”

“He did not,” Keiko interrupted her. “Regardless, that’s one issue I have with you resolved. Thank you for your honesty.”

“Now, what-”

Keiko rolled up some papers that were sitting on the desk and bonked Kawakami over the head with them. “What are you thinking sleeping with a student?”

“Ow!” Kawakami didn’t fight back, though. “I wasn’t thinking?”

“Are you telling me you got charmed out of your pants by a teenager?” Keiko raised an eyebrow and held up the paper again like Kawakami might get another bonk.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying,” Kawakami shrugged. “I’ve never met anyone that smooth in my entire life.”

Makoto laughed. “The difference in attitude we see in Ren and the attitude he has when he’s pursuing women is astounding. We both think he’s a dork.”

“Of  _ course, _ you think he’s a dork,” Kawakami said. “He is a dork, but it’s the kind that makes you feel like you’re the only woman that matters at that moment. And then he goes and lives up to it-” She sighed. “It really fucks with your head.”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “He’s going to start a cult of all the women he’s slept with.”

“I think the proper term is a harem,” Makoto corrected. “He’s started a harem.”

“He’s got a girlfriend now,” Kawakami said. “It’s a bit sad, but probably for the best. She’s the-”

“Luckiest girl in the world,” Keiko droned. “We’ve heard that before. What does he even do that’s different?”

Makoto glared at Keiko, who could only grin as Kawakami started to answer her question seriously.

“You’ll get bad information from a lot of women, so honestly? I don’t mind giving you a healthier image of it,” Kawakami said, earning another glare from Makoto. “What? I’m a teacher, and part of that is showing kids how to build a healthy relationship. That’s part of it. Plus, well, you know my background. I’ve seen a lot of unhealthy relationships.”

“Right,” Keiko said. “If anyone knew what not to do, it’d be you.”

“This is going to sound lame, because you’ll hear all these crazy things about the size, or motion, or positions, and my answer isn’t like that at all.” She looked off into space. “It’s just waiting, listening, and being attentive. If you ever feel like you’re just going through the motions, it’s probably not going to be as satisfying.”

“Huh,” Keiko said. “Makes sense.”

“There’s no one-size-fits-all strategy. You need to care about the other person.” Kawakami looked down at the papers in Keiko’s hand. “Now, can I have the permission slips back? I really hope you didn’t crinkle them.”

“One more thing,” Keiko said. “I need something in return for my silence on you sleeping with a student, no matter how understandable it is.”

“Every time I get out from under one person’s thumb, I end up under another,” Kawakami huffed and looked at her fearfully. “What do you want?”

“Makoto and I want to be roommates in Hawaii,” Keiko said firmly.

“Wait. Is that really all you wanted?” Kawakami sighed. “You didn’t even need to ask me for that. It’s not like I’m gonna find you two having sex or something.”

Keiko and Makoto shared a look.

“I’m pretty sure I already had you two paired together-” Kawakami pulled out a folder. “Yep. I have you in a room connecting with Suzui and Takamaki. Is that okay?”

“More than okay,” Keiko said before Makoto could protest. “You’re the best, Becky-”

“Don’t call me that!”

===

_ Evening _

“I can’t believe Okumura is still using a beeper,” Futaba let out a belly laugh when Keiko handed her the box. “I wonder if it’s a security thing or if he’s just a giant nerd.”

“What makes you think he’s a nerd?”

“Because there are instructions inside the box on what to do with it,” Futaba was talking in between her laughing fits. “Including a codebreaker for the hidden language they’re using. This is the dumbest, most unnecessary security measure I have  _ ever _ seen.”

“You still haven’t explained why that makes him a nerd,” Keiko prodded again. 

“Have you ever seen The Wire?” Futaba raised an eyebrow at Keiko, who shrugged. “You and Makoto should watch The Wire. You’d both enjoy it.”

“Okay, but can you explain what you’re referencing?” Makoto interrupted. Sae was again working late, so they decided it was time for an impromptu Futaba sleepover. 

Futaba sighed. “Fine. So, these instructions are a mirror image of something they did in that show. A pager works differently than a cell phone. They’re pretty secure. You’re given the option of providing whatever number you’re calling from, but in this case, I bet Okumura and his people are using fake numbers that equal the letters in the code. That’s part of the message they’re trying to send.” Futaba let out a small laugh. “The other part, well, it looks like they’re still keeping to code, but it’s juvenile. ‘The eagle has landed,’ things of that nature.”

“Do we have a good way of intercepting their messages?”

“We don’t,” Futaba said. “We would need a specific pager belonging to somebody who is actively part of their organization in order to mirror that signal. We could duplicate the message so it’s sent to both pagers. They’d never know as long as we return their pager to them before they know it’s gone.”

“So, if Haru could somehow get us access to somebody higher up on the food chain’s pager-” Futaba interrupted Keiko’s conjecture.

“We would be in business.”

“Isn’t this all pretty roundabout?” Makoto looked back and forth between Futaba and Keiko. “Like, Futaba, you’re good enough that you could have Okumura begging for mercy by tomorrow morning.”

“I could,” Futaba shrugged. “But this is more fun. Plus, it would crush Haru if somebody took her revenge away from her.”

“How do you-”

“I was listening to your conversation,” Futaba grinned. “How’s it feel to be working with Mitsuru Kirijo’s protege?”

“No way,” Keiko said. “Are you sure?”

“This isn’t something I would joke about,” Futaba said. “Tread lightly.”

“Does this mean we shouldn’t trust her?”

“I’d go the opposite direction with this,” Futaba said. “Haru is probably doing something of this nature on her own for the first time. She’s probably nervous. Tread lightly because if things go tits up-”

“Can you please not talk that way-” Makoto interjected.

“I refuse.” Futaba adjusted her glasses. “When things go tits up, she’s probably going to do whatever she can to flip it back over. Kirijo inspires a certain loyalty from those close to her.”

“That honestly doesn’t seem anything like her public image,” Keiko said. “She’s always very firm, but honest.”

Futaba shrugged. “I don’t think that’s far off. I’ve butted heads with Kirijo Group a few times and they’re surprisingly merciful.”

Keiko’s eyes narrowed. “What did you do?”

“Just tried to grab some files. They had a division conducting research similar to mom’s.” Futaba re-opened her laptop and started typing. “I’ll see if I can find the message they left me.”

_ Alibaba, _

_ We know you’re searching for answers about your mother’s death. They’ll come in time, but if you do not stop meddling, we will be forced to act. _

_ Signed _

_ Lucia _

“I kinda stopped messing with them after that,” Futaba said. “I don’t know if they  _ actually _ know who I am, or if they took a shot in the dark. But they haven’t messed with me, so I won’t mess with them.”

“Why does it feel like we’re playing with fire?” Makoto looked at Keiko, hoping for some reassurance. 

“It’s an unknown,” Keiko said. “They seem scarier because we don’t know what they’re doing and we don’t know what they’re capable of, and with Okumura, we have at least a slight idea of what’s happening.”

Futaba nodded. “This is just an added wrinkle that takes the Phantom Thieves out of the equation. It does something else, though.”

“And what’s that?” Keiko said.

“It might work as an added layer of protection. The whole point of you showing yourself on TV was to make sure you were notable enough that your death via mental shutdown would be too big for the public to ignore.”

“I don’t understand what this has to do with-”

“Well, you would understand if you let me finish,” Futaba was getting frustrated. “For somebody who listens for a living, you sure interrupt people a lot.” She shook her head. “Anyway, Kirijo seems to be fairly benevolent and beholden to people who are loyal to them. If something happens to you or Makoto, Haru would probably try and take the blame. Kirijo will typically step in for those kinds of things.”

“And that matters because,” Keiko said, trailing off.

“Because Okumura Foods has specifically avoided Kirijo Group investments and only Kirijo Group investments. Like, it’s shocking how he’s gone after basically everyone else with mental shutdowns and shady business practices,” Futaba said. “They’re either in on it, or they have dirt on him. I like to believe they have dirt because I don’t think any company that would give me a warning like that is a bad guy. I know that’s a bit biased.” Futaba shrugged. 

“Are you omniscient?” Makoto didn’t believe the massive amounts of information Futaba just had at the top of her head.

“You learn a surprising amount of intel when you don’t leave the house for years at a time,” Futaba said. “Can we watch The Wire? I found a torrent while we were talking. It just finished downloading.”

===

_ Thursday, September 1, After School _

Today was the decided upon day where the Phantom Thieves would meet Keiko’s shadow, and not knowing what events would transpire drove the non-shadow Keiko nuts. She wanted to sit by herself at Makoto’s apartment, basking in the existential dread. Sadly, her non-Phantom Thief friends wouldn’t let that happen.

“Keiko-chan!” A cheery voice called as she neared the school gate. Haru was walking briskly behind her. 

“Hey, Haru,” Keiko greeted glumly. “What’re you up to?”

“I got done with the garden early,” Haru said. “I was hoping you’d have time to hang out today.”

Keiko shrugged. “I guess. Sorry, I’m not going to be good company today.”

“Did something happen? I noticed Mako-chan left class as quickly as she could,” Haru said.

“She made plans with some friends,” Keiko tried to think of a good lie, but her heart just wasn’t in it. “It wasn’t anything I was interested in, so I figured I’d stay behind.”

“That’s sad,” Haru said. “But it makes sense. It’s healthy for a couple to have their own friends.”

“A couple?” Another friendly voice butted in, wrapping her arms around Keiko from behind. “A couple-a knuckleheads?”

Keiko facepalmed. “I  _ knew _ letting you date Ren was a mistake.”

“What do you mean?” Kasumi gave a confused look.

“That was a total Ren move, Sumi-chan,” Keiko said with a sigh. It  _ did _ cheer her up, though. “The universe just doesn’t want to let me mope. I have to go to LeBlanc later anyway. You guys up for some coffee?”

Haru brightened up. “I’d love to!”

Kasumi sighed. “Coach thinks I’m consuming too much caffeine.”

“Are you?” Keiko raised an eyebrow.

“No,” Kasumi shrugged. “I’m just happier lately, so I’m more energetic. She just assumed the caffeine-part.”

They boarded the train to Yongen and made their way towards LeBlanc. Things were busy around Tokyo, so they weren’t able to have much in the way of conversation on their journey. Keiko preferred it that way because she still got to mope a little.

The familiar jingle of the door removed Sojiro’s eyes from his crossword puzzle. 

“Why couldn’t all the pretty girls have walked through my door 30 years ago?” He said, smirking at the girls.

“You wouldn’t have known what to do with yourself.” Keiko paused. “30 years ago?”

“How old do you think I am?” Sojiro asked quizzically. 

“At least 60,” Keiko said, wearing a shit-eating grin.

“Knock off about 20 years,” Sojiro grumbled. “I’m charging you triple.”

“I’ll pay triple,” Keiko agreed. “It’s that good.”

The three girls took a seat in a booth, and Haru continued to marvel at the place.

“This reminds me so much of my grandfather’s place!” Haru said. “It’s so warm and inviting and-” it was adorable seeing Haru being genuinely excited. “Gosh. I could just live here.”

“Ren actually does, so-”

“Seriously?” Haru looked concerned. “Is there an apartment upstairs or something?”

“Nope,” Kasumi said. “He’s got the attic to himself. It’s nicer than you’d expect, but it’s still an attic.” 

“That’s miserable,” Haru said.

“Hey, I keep the place warm for him,” Sojiro interjected. “I tried to move him into the house. He prefers the attic.”

“That doesn’t surprise me,” Kasumi smiled. “He’s made some good memories up there. It makes sense he’d want to make more.”

“Some  _ real _ good memories,” Keiko chortled, then froze. Kasumi looked at her funny.

“What are you implying?”

“What?” Keiko looked at Haru, who hid an awkward smile behind her offhand. “I didn’t say anything. I implied nothing.” Kasumi’s look of concern had her feeling terribly guilty.

An awkward silence hung in the air for about 15 seconds before Kasumi burst out laughing. “You should have seen your face!”

Keiko’s cheeks went red with embarrassment and Haru couldn’t hold her laughter. Then Keiko started laughing, too.

“Whew,” Keiko said. “At first, I thought you didn’t know-”

“Didn’t know what?” Kasumi interrupted her.

“Uh,” Keiko said. “I’ll just-uh,” she stammered again. “About Ren?”

Kasumi didn’t have it in her to keep the awkward silence going again, and started laughing almost immediately. “Ren’s right. You’re easy to mess with.”

“You’re a jerk,” Keiko pouted. “I thought we were friends.”

“We are,” Kasumi said. “Which is why I fought back playfully when you brought up something that might make me uncomfortable.” She must’ve noticed the weird look Haru was giving her. “Sorry, this isn’t something I’m used to.”

“I thought you did a good job, Sumi-chan,” Haru said, noticing Kasumi’s slight wince when she said that. “Sorry, I mean Yoshizawa-san.”

“No, it’s okay. You can call me that, Haru-Senpai,” Kasumi replied cheerfully. “I’m trying to get better at being less formal.”

“Well, now that I’m done getting roasted alive,” Keiko started, looking into the full coffee cup Sojiro placed in front of her, “how was your first day of school?”

Kasumi looked at Haru as if telling her to go first.

“Mine was good,” Haru said with a smile. “I’m so happy to be back.”

Keiko could feel sadness under the words. It felt more like ‘happy to be out of the house.’ “What about you, Kasumi?”

“It was fine-”

The bell jingled violently enough to cut off Kasumi’s speech, and Haru let out an uncharacteristic swear while exiting the booth.

“What are you doing here?” A man wearing a gaudy white suit barged through the door and made a beeline for Haru. “You were to return home after school.”

“Sugimura! I just wanted to catch up with some friends after-”

His hands slammed on the table.  _ “You  _ don’t get to make decisions like that,” the man spat. “If I wanted you to have friends, I’d-” he grabbed her wrist, which was enough for Keiko to step in between them.

Except Sojiro beat her to it, pulling the man’s hand off of Haru’s wrist, then shoving him back toward the counter. 

“She’s not on the menu,” Sojiro shoved him back toward the door. The man tripped over his feet and fell flat on his ass. 

Meanwhile, Keiko had her phone out, firing off a message.

“She’s my-”

“Boss, let me handle it,” Haru said, stepping to the man’s side. She helped him up.

“I’ll sue! I’ll own this whole fucking place!” The man yelled as she ushered him out of the building.

Sojiro stood in front of the door rubbing the back of his head. “Any clue who that guy was?”

“Haru’s fiance, I’m betting,” Keiko huffed. 

“That guy? He was in his 30’s. Is he really engaged to a high schooler?” Sojiro looked shocked. “That just isn’t right.”

“We should go after them-” Kasumi started to head toward the door but Keiko grabbed her wrist.

“With what?” Keiko said. “Makoto would kill me if I went charging after them like this. Ren would do the same to either of you.” She gestured at both Kasumi and Sojiro. 

“Me?” Sojiro said. “Why would the kid-”

“Don’t even pretend he doesn’t look up to you,” Keiko scoffed. “He even started, well,  _ behaving _ like you after moving here.”

“You have a point,” Sojiro scratched his chin. “Why do you seem so calm about this?”

“Because Dr. Takemi  _ might _ be waiting at the end of the alleyway with a baseball bat,” Keiko giggled. “I recognized the guy as soon as he walked in and knew he was trouble.”

As if on cue, Haru walked through the door, idly wiping dirt off her skirt. 

“Was that woman your friend?”

“My savior, more like,” Keiko chuckled. “She’s my doctor.”

“Well,” Haru sighed. “I guess you got to meet my fiance.”

“Did he survive?”

Haru smiled. “I might just be a little safer with you guys around.”

The bell on LeBlanc’s door rang again, everyone in the cafe turning their heads to glare.

“Uh, did I do something?” Ren looked confused. “I swear, I kept it in my-”

“You’re a dumbass,” Sojiro chuckled. “It’s almost dinner time. Anyone hungry?”

An orange head poked out from behind Ren, but Futaba continued hiding behind him once she saw Haru.

“Futaba,” Keiko said. “Come here.”

“I don’t know her,” Futaba mumbled, slowly stepping out from behind him.

“C’mon, Futaba,” Ren encouraged her. “If you can walk around Akihabara, you can talk to a friend-of-a-friend.” Ren took a seat at the counter, rendering Futaba unable to hide behind him.

“Fine,” Futaba trailed off, then spoke far too quickly. “Hi, I’m Futaba. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you, Futaba-chan,” Haru smiled warmly. “I’m Haru.”

“Oh!” Futaba was immediately no longer shy. “False alarm, you’re the other voice when I spy on Keiko.”

“Is it even spying at this point?” Keiko rolled her eyes. Then she looked at Haru. “She’s my tech-savvy friend.”

Haru still looked a bit confused. “She can hear everything you say?”

“Probably,” Keiko shrugged. “I forget about her, most of the time.”

“Blasphemer! I’m unforgettable!” Her shouts rattled the cafe.

“Futaba!” Sojiro and Ren both admonished her at the same time, in the same tone of voice, and everybody laughed.

Keiko stayed to eat because there was no use in letting free curry go to waste. Futaba handled the new company as well as she could have. 

“I need to get heading back,” Keiko said, standing up and taking her leave after hearing more about Kasumi’s day. She couldn’t help but feel like something was off. She leaned into Ren on the way out the door. “Uh, how’d it go?”

“It went well, I’d say,” Ren said, but he couldn’t stop grinning, and Keiko could tell Ren was trying to stop. “Makoto might have a hard time talking about it.”

Keiko’s heart sank. “Great.”

“Have fun!” Ren gave her a wave, and she made her way back to the apartment.

===

_ Evening _

Sae was working late again so Keiko didn’t expect to find her, but Makoto wasn’t sitting in her usual studying spot on the couch either. Her shoes were by the door, which was the only reason Keiko knew she was home. ‘Maybe she’s in her room.’ 

She couldn’t see the light on under Makoto’s door, so she knocked. She received a grunt in response. 

“Mako,” Keiko spoke softly. “Can I come in?”

“Yes,” Makoto said. She opened her door and wrapped her arms around Keiko. 

Keiko didn’t realize she’d been so tense all afternoon, but her shoulders untensed in seconds. “Was it that bad?” They broke the hug and made their way to the couch. They didn’t sit as close as usual. Keiko thought they might be able to pay a bit more attention that way.

“It was just so  _ awkward!” _ Makoto emphasized. “Like, your shadow was perving on me but she didn’t recognize me, so it was this weird feeling where I’m like, this is normal but also it’s not and-”

“Okay, you’re rambling,” Keiko said. “So, that obviously bothered you but we should stick to the intel you gathered first.”

Makoto nodded, and went into the details they were able to gather: The shadow did take detailed notes but refused to give them away, which Keiko expected. They were able to trade a few thermoses of coffee for a detailed rundown, though, which Futaba took notes of, so the Phantom Thieves have decided to trust the shadow because they trust Keiko.

Morgana put it into perspective for them saying that the shadow is the inner-self, so it’s the feelings that Keiko has that she’s scared to bring to the surface, hence the inappropriate skeevy comments towards Makoto.

Keiko might’ve hit Makoto over the head with Buchi-kun when she made it to that part. 

The shadow said that Akechi is the man with the black mask, which was nice to have confirmed, and she didn’t know of a good way to get proof, but she so desperately wanted proof, and then she got really angry and started to transform so they Phantom Thieves left because they didn’t see a point in changing her heart when the shadow might not even exist if Keiko would take her girlfriend to pound-

“Makoto!”

“What? I was quoting Futaba!”

“I can’t believe she’d say that!”

_ “Really?”  _ Makoto glared at her girlfriend. “Futaba would definitely say that!”

“How are you saying that with a straight face?”

Makoto’s eyes shifted around the room. “I may or may not know what ‘taking your girlfriend to pound town’ means. Isn’t Pound Town the rescue shelter by your mom’s house?”

“Oh, Mako,” Keiko pulled her into a hug. “You’re too precious for this world.”

Makoto sighed. “This explains why everyone was laughing at me.”

“You poor thing,” Keiko tried to hide her grin. She loosened her hug and met her girlfriend’s eyes. “We can definitely adopt a puppy, though. I’m getting my own place soon, and I might get lonely.”

“Oh, you’ll never be lonely,” Makoto said, then kissed her.

Then Keiko ruined it by laughing.

“Too cheesy?”

“You’re terrible.”

===

_ Saturday, September 3rd, Afternoon _

**Rio:** Any news on the mental shutdown front?

**Keiko:** Pending further investigation, yes. I’ll have more for you after our class trip. We’re going to Hawaii, so I’ll be safer to talk to my source openly there.

**Rio:** damn fleein the country for journalism

**Rio:** You must be legit

**Keiko:** This trip has been planned for months.

**Rio:** let me pretend

Keiko dedicated her Saturday afternoon to apartment hunting, which she was excited for until she actually started doing it. Had Haru not demanded she be allowed to come with, Keiko probably would have just taken the man showing her the first apartment at his word. Haru, however, noticed several issues in the flooring that suggested a bug problem. The man then discovered he was potentially renting to a 16-year-old and backed out. 

“You’ll probably have a hard time finding anyone who will rent to somebody your age,” Haru said. “I know the people that run my properties are very careful with who they let in, so I imagine you’ll have a difficult time finding anywhere reputable that will rent to you.”

“You mean your dad’s property, right?”

“Huh? Oh, no. Mother was careful to leave everything to me, rather than my father,” Haru said. “I have some rental properties unrelated to his business. I was going to offer to rent a space to you, but I didn’t know if that was a conflict of interest.”

“How much is rent?” They ended up sitting on a bench in Inokashira park while they decided what they should do next. The park was buzzing on a beautiful summer day. 

“97,130 yen per month is the highest I’ve gone,” Haru said. “Most of the people living there are young families, but unfortunately the city complains if I go any lower.”

Keiko was floored. “Considering that’s half the average rent for a decent apartment around here, I’m wondering what the catch is.”

“No catch,” Haru smiled. “Mother was an affordable housing advocate for most of her life. The Okumura Foundation, before she died, built many of the newer homes and apartment buildings. She received a lot of credit for preventing a suburban exodus on the same level as other cities.”

“Would you rent to me?”

“Of course,” Haru said. “We could head to one of the properties right now, if you’d like. I have a nice one that’s within walking distance.”

“You could rent me a broom closet at this point,” Keiko huffed. “That guy gave me a bad vibe.”

Haru agreed. “Landlording specifically for profit was something Mother tried to fight against. Unfortunately, there’s only so much one woman can do.”

“I bet your dad loved that,” Keiko scoffed. 

“Actually, he did,” Haru said. “My father is extremely competitive. He used to see value in contrasting ideas, and I think it’s part of why they fell in love.”

“I’m sorry, Haru,” Keiko said. “I didn’t mean to imply-”

“He wasn’t always a bad person,” Haru said, then she smiled at Keiko. “I have hopes that he won’t be a bad person much longer.”

They walked to a high-rise apartment building that was so well-kept and clean that Keiko nearly begged Haru to show her something run down. 

Haru greeted a maintenance man sweeping the floor downstairs by name, asked how his kids were and wished him a nice rest of his day. Keiko couldn’t help but watch it unfold, detached from the conversation because it was pretty unusual to see. She  _ knew _ Haru, and would never guess she’s still in high school.

They stood in front of the elevator while Haru checked something on her phone. 

“I think there’s an open apartment on the 47th floor,” Haru said. “I have a padlock on the door right now, but I can get you a key tonight.”

“We haven’t even discussed a down payment or-”

“I know you’ll think I’m doing you this big favor or something,” Haru said. “But honestly? It’s worth not getting your money right now to avoid having to do the extra paperwork. We can worry about that after Hawaii.”

“If you’re sure,” Keiko said. “I don’t want to take advantage-”

“Oh, that’s nonsense,” Haru said. “Like I  _ didn’t _ stalk you for weeks with the intention of blackmailing you.”

“Wait, you did-”

“See? We’re even now,” Haru said with a stupidly warm smile, given what she just confessed to. ‘For somebody who claims she’s not scary, she might be even worse than I thought,’ Keiko mused. “You’re terrifying sometimes, you know that?”

“It’s not my intention,” Haru said thoughtfully. “It’s learned behavior from my mentor. Now, let’s get upstairs.”

Keiko  _ really _ wanted to ask about Kirijo, but given Haru’s separation, she decided it was a sore subject that would need to be avoided. She followed wordlessly. Haru hummed a tune as she turned a key into the slot for the 47th floor on the elevator.

“How many people live in this building?” Keiko felt the need to ask  _ some _ questions about where she’d be living.

Haru looked like she was doing some quick math in her head. “500? Somewhere around there. There’s an exact number in my files. I have to keep tabs to stay within the fire code. We don’t have many solo-tenants, so if you find a roommate, just let me know and I’ll adjust.”

The elevator stopped and opened to one carpeted hallway with a window overlooking the city at the far end and wood double doors on the left and right side, but not directly across from each other. The one that was further away from the elevator now belonged to Keiko.

“Do I have a neighbor?” Keiko asked as they walked by the adjacent door.

“You do,” she said. “Only part of the time, though. The room across the hall is a safehouse I use when I have to get away from Sugimura.”

“Is he that dangerous?”

Haru nodded. “He has a temper. I try not to let it get to me.”

Keiko nodded, opting not to pry. Haru typed in a code on the padlock that held the doors shut.

The apartment wasn’t overly fancy, in Keiko’s opinion, but it was fancier than she was accustomed to. The double doors opened directly into a warmly colored living area with dark wood floors. There was a very modern-looking kitchen off to her left, and a hallway leading to bedrooms at the far end directly across from the entryway. 

“Kitchen is fairly new,” Haru said. “The previous tenants left the kitchen table and chairs, so if you want it, it’s yours. There’s a dresser left in the master bedroom, too. I have an extra desk that’s not in use if you want to use one of the extra bedrooms as an office. It could save you from working in that windowless office.”

“Haru, this is too much-”

Haru shrugged. “It’s not enough if I’m being honest.”

“This can’t just be because you feel guilty about stalking me,” Keiko said. “Is there something else?”

“I’ll take you through the rest of the apartment,” Haru said, deliberately ignoring the question. She walked down the small hallway. There was one door to the left and two to the right, then another at the end of the hallway. “The room to the left is a bathroom, but there’s another bathroom attached to the master bedroom. These two rooms,” she gestured to the ones on the right, “are bedrooms.”

She opened the doors and their design was largely the same as the living area: Warmly colored, wood floors, brown trim, and a window that overlooked the nearby buildings. The high-rise wasn’t the tallest building in the neighborhood, but it was close. Then Haru closed the doors and opened the door to the largest bedroom.

“I’m assuming this will be your room,” Haru said. “The bathroom to the right has a tub and two sinks, just in case you have any use for that.” Keiko could hear the ‘in case Makoto stays over’ in her voice. “What do you think?”

Keiko tried to gather the words to show how appreciative she was and failed. “This is so over-the-top. I was just planning on getting a studio apartment in a slum, but I’m so grateful.”

“It’s nothing,” Haru said. “Anything for a friend.”

“I need to know, though,” Keiko said. She’d try to pry one more time. “Did something else happen? Seriously, the following me around and stuff don’t bother me all that much. Futaba’s been doing it for months.”

Haru nodded but didn’t say anything for a bit. She must’ve gathered her thoughts about 20 seconds later. “I-” she stammered. “Part of why I started following you in the first place is because I found your name in a notebook next to my father’s bed while I was snooping.”

“That’s unsettling,” Keiko shuddered.

“You were the only living person on the list,” Haru said. “I stepped in knowing that I could no longer stand by while my father-”

Keiko wrapped Haru in a hug. “Thank you, Haru.”

Haru startled briefly before she hugged back. She spoke again after they broke their embrace.

“You should call Makoto. Maybe tell her what’s going on, and then she can come help us get you moved in.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know what bothers me? There's a Persona called Eris, and Haru's an heiress, and it's kind of weird that they didn't capitalize on that pun.
> 
> This chapter isn't dark like the last one, thank god. The next few chapters are all Hawaii, which has been a lot of fun to write. I'm excited to hear what people think. Tbh it's way easier to write for Keiko when she's not practically living with Makoto.


	20. Moving Day

_Saturday, September 3rd, Evening_

It was supposed to be a trip to a second-hand store so Keiko could get a couch. Then it became a trip to a furniture store because she needed a bed to sleep on. Then Futaba, who had been listening to every bit of conversation because she had nothing better to do told Keiko it was urgent that she purchase a TV so they could play video games together when she came over.

Then they ran into Ren on the way to Keiko’s house so they could fill Haru’s van, which she apparently owned, with Keiko’s belongings.

Keiko started her afternoon _looking for_ apartments. She hadn’t expected to look for, find, and move into an apartment all in one day. So, that day potentially featuring a showdown with her mother would have been far too much to handle.

She jumped for joy when she returned home and her parents were nowhere to be found. 

“Are you parents that bad, Keiko-chan?” Haru and Makoto each took an end of a large box full of Keiko’s clothes. She was able to pack fairly quickly, given she was only taking her clothes, her computer, and her rocking chair.

Makoto rolled her eyes and responded before Keiko could. “Her mother is just profoundly stupid. I don’t know if I’d call her a bad person.”

Keiko, meanwhile, was hefting the rocking chair down the steps. “What Makoto said. I don’t know much about my mother’s husband.” ‘Despite living in a house with him for 16 years,’ her inner monologue grumbled.

“Oh,” Haru said. “I take it he’s not your-”

“Not my real dad, nope,” Keiko set the rocking chair down at the base of the steps. “I know nothing of the sperm donor.”

Ren brought up the rear, carrying her computer. “Every time you get brought up, Sojiro makes sure we know you’re not his kid.”

Keiko laughed. “I sure hope not. The old man has his arms full with Futaba.”

They piled everything into the van, and somehow fit all four of them inside. Keiko and Makoto took a definitely-not-safe seat on the floor of the van while Haru drove them to Keiko’s new home.

Keiko and Makoto survived the trip by some minor miracle, unphased by the bumpy ride, at least physically. 

The apartment looked slightly lived-in now that it had furniture, although the walls that didn’t have windows were in need of decoration. It was something Keiko would remind herself to take care of later. 

“What’s everyone think?” Keiko and Ren had placed the TV on an old stand along the interior wall, the couch sitting in front of it. She still needed a coffee table and a rug, but having somewhere to sit was nice. 

“Still needs some character,” Ren said. 

Makoto agreed. “You need a bookshelf, too. Maybe some photos on the walls.”

Keiko wasn’t looking for that kind of answer. “I meant, like, what do you think of the place?” She rolled her eyes, then split from the group, plopping down on the couch. The TV was on and already hooked up, so they already had something inane playing in the background. 

Makoto took the seat next to her, leaning her head on her shoulder. Keiko wondered if showing affection in front of friends made her heart race, too. “It’s great, Keiko.” She sat back up and looked at Haru, who had taken a seat on Keiko’s rocking chair. Ren was leaning against the wall. “Are you sure this is okay?”

Haru looked like she might’ve been enjoying rocking back and forth a bit too much to pay attention to the conversation. Keiko could sympathize with that.

“Haru-”

“Oh, sorry,” she shook out of a daze. 

“I’ve been victimized by that rocking chair a million times,” Keiko chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. Makoto asked if you’re sure this is okay.”

“Right,” Haru nodded. “It’s definitely okay, Mako-chan.”

“You can tell them what you found if you want to,” Keiko said. “We were already going to tell Makoto, and Ren’s a nuisance-”

“Am not!”

“Are too! He’d stick his nose where it doesn’t belong,” Keiko said.

“I have never once stuck my nose where it-”

“Haru, is this building susceptible to lightning strikes?” Makoto asked in a mocking tone.

Haru gave her a confused look. 

“I’m just saying, Ren should probably get struck by lightning for lying,” Makoto said, getting a chuckle from her friends.

“That’s fine,” Haru said. She explained the events from the other day: Who Sugimura was, why she has to be careful with making phone calls or text messages, and her father’s political ambitions and how they stripped her of her autonomy and birthright. “The shortest way to say it is I’ve been working my entire life so I can be prepared to take over the family business, and now my father has decided I’d be better used as a bargaining chip for political power.”

She explained how she had gone through their home in search of dirt and discovered a notebook of her father’s enemies.

“On the final page, there was a list of names.” Haru sounded just as nervous saying it out loud this time as she had last time. Keiko wondered if that was an effect brought on by the added company. “Keiko-chan’s name was the last name on the list, and she is the only person on the list that’s still alive.”

“What could Keiko have done to land herself on your father’s hit list?” Keiko knew better than to trust Ren’s incredulous look. He was playing dumb.

“I only have a conjecture,” Haru frowned. “There’s still the popular belief that Keiko is a Phantom Thief, somehow. I think that may be a more complicated answer than necessary, though. Her brief mention of my family name on television caused it to skyrocket in internet searches and trends on social media. I don’t know how often any of you pay attention to the Phantom Thieves website, but my father is their most requested target.”

Keiko glanced over at Ren, who gave a mock surprised look. 

“I may or may not have been one of the people who requested he has his heart changed,” Haru said, looking into her lap. 

Ren now wore a real surprised look. 

“I would prefer to have a hand in his downfall, however.” She looked at Keiko, her eyes watering. “I won’t pretend my intentions aren’t at least partially selfish, but I thought going through proper means and letting the court of public opinion decide his fate would be the more honorable decision.”

“That makes a lot of sense, Haru,” Ren said.

“Besides, I will relish watching a misogynistic ethno-idealist obsessed with short-shortsighted nationalism fall at the hands of girls not yet out of high school,” Haru said. “I can’t fight back physically, but I _can_ crush his spirit. I intend to do so.”

Her eyes flashed around the room as she blushed. “Oh, I’m so being scary right now-”

Makoto shrugged as she interrupted her. “That’s actually a fairly normal topic of conversation with us.”

“Yep,” Ren said. “Nationalism is a curse.”

“You sound like my mother,” Haru said with a small laugh. 

“What did your mom even do?” Keiko said. “Like, in what way did she ever fit with your father?”

“It was an arranged marriage, as well,” Haru said. “Mother was an activist, and she probably would have been jailed if it weren’t for her family name.”

“Left-leaning parties in Japan tend to have-”

“Very bloody ends, yes,” Haru said. “She didn’t, though. I don’t want to pretend she was a revolutionary. She published a lot of books and was a widely regarded theorist before she died.”

“How did she die?”

“It’s a bit anticlimactic,” Haru said. “You’d think she was assassinated or something, for how everything else in my life has gone. She was an extremely heavy smoker. She died of lung cancer when I was in middle school.”

“Have I heard of her?”

“Probably not,” Haru sighed. “The older and more radicalized my father became, the more effort he put into scrubbing her name from her works.”

“That’s bullshit,” Keiko mumbled. “Fucking men.”

“Yeah, men suck,” Ren said sarcastically.

“If you stuck to men, I wouldn’t have had to threaten your dick with a knife,” Keiko said. 

Ren winced. “Well, I should get going before I am relieved of the only thing that gives me a sense of self-worth.”

“I’ll take my leave, as well,” Haru said. “You two have a good night.” There was something slightly suggestive in her tone that made Keiko and Makoto both blush.

They cuddled in silence on the couch, Keiko resting because she was completely exhausted and Makoto reflecting on the day’s events. 

Keiko knew this because Makoto’s breathing wasn’t steady like she was relaxing, and she could feel a pounding heartbeat through her back. “You good, Mako?”

Her voice came out as a croak. “No.” She cleared her throat. She squirmed a little before sitting up. Keiko had been leaning against the corner of the couch with Makoto draped over her. “I’m surprised you’re doing okay.”

Keiko sighed. “I’m just too tired to freak out, maybe. Do you trust Haru?”

“I do,” Makoto said. “I think she’s putting a lot more on the line than she’s letting on.”

“I’m under that impression, as well.” Keiko didn’t like that they broke contact to talk, so she grabbed Makoto’s hand. ‘When did I get so damn needy?’ She thought to herself. 

Keiko must’ve thought for too long because Makoto knocked on her forehead. “Hello in there,” she giggled. 

“Sorry,” Keiko blushed. “I spaced out.”

“I can let you sleep,” Makoto said. “I told Sae I was staying the night. I hope that’s okay.”

“Hey, that means we can break in the new-”

“You _do_ know what that sounds like, right?” Makoto raised an eyebrow.

“That reminds me! We need to go to Pound Town tomorrow!”

Makoto blushed furiously.

===

_Sunday, September 4, Morning_

Keiko awoke before Makoto to a buzzing phone.

 **Mom:** You find a new place?   
****

**Keiko:** Yes

 **Mom:** okay. Stay safe

 **Keiko:** You too

She knew better than to think her mother would be petty about Keiko moving out. Her mother left the family home to live alone at the same age, so she could probably sympathize at least a little. 

‘She could fight just a little,’ Keiko thought. It hurt how little her parents seemed to care that she even left. 

Keiko rolled over and out of bed. Walking into her new living space was a tad disorienting, even more so when she looked out the massive giant floor-to-ceiling windows. She didn’t realize she was up so high. That was pretty cool, Keiko thought.

She was going to miss having LeBlanc so close, though. There was bound to be a serviceable coffee shop somewhere close because the apartment was in a neighborhood between Yongen and Shibuya, but she couldn’t imagine any of the shops replacing LeBlanc. Keiko again checked her phone to see the walking distance.

“25-minute walk,” she groaned out loud. It wasn’t a terribly long walk in the summer when the weather was warm, but that would be a trek the magnitude of her grandfather’s childhood in the winter. Keiko would have to get a coffee pot, or worse. She’d have to ask Sojiro how to make coffee his way. She heard a phrase in English once, something like _“once you go black, you never go back.”_ Keiko had no idea what it pertained to, but it might’ve been about coffee.

She heard the bedroom door open and peeked around the corner to see a sleepy Makoto trudge into the restroom. She was out in a few minutes, looking slightly less sleepy.

Makoto chuckled lightly when she saw the frown stuck on Keiko’s face. “You just remembered you don’t have a coffee maker.”

“How’d you guess?”

“Well, you only look like that when you don’t have access to coffee, or a story falls through. Given you don’t print again until after Hawaii, I’m assuming you don’t have access to coffee.” Keiko couldn’t decide whether she wanted to punch or kiss Makoto’s smug face. 

“I can’t believe the school wouldn’t let me print tomorrow,” Keiko grumbled.

Makoto awkwardly looked anywhere but at Keiko. “That uh, might have been my order.”

Keiko glared, and Makoto went into defense mode.

“I wanted to spend the last weekend of summer with you,” Makoto said. “So, I kind of told all the school clubs that they couldn’t start until after the second-years returned from Hawaii.”

“I bet the volleyball team loved that one-”

“They don’t even have a coach,” Makoto said.

“What? That’s a huge deal!” Keiko jolted where she stood. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Keiko might’ve stormed up and gotten in Makoto’s face if her sigh hadn’t sounded so sad. “You need a break, Keiko.”

“They won nationals last year, Mako,” Keiko didn’t mean to yell. “This is a slam dunk for me. Like, seriously! How bad does this look that _my_ school’s team won a national title last year and now they don’t have a coach, and I’m not even breaking the story?”

“Keiko-”

“I’ve been breaking national stories since April, and I can’t figure out how to cover my own school?” She huffed and started pacing. “We need to-”

“I’ll get you Kobayakawa’s cell number, and you can put something small together. _Normal_ schools don’t even start practice this early. Volleyball is a winter sport.”

Keiko couldn’t help this was Makoto’s way of getting her to stop throwing a fit, rather than backing down. “Why are you being so stubborn on this?”

“Like you _aren’t_ being stubborn? Because summer break was supposed to be a _break,_ and we started school already,” Makoto had on her teacher's voice, which Keiko found both irritating and _something else_ she couldn’t explain. “Remember when we told ourselves it would be a nice break from the chaos?”

“Uh, I do,” Keiko said. 

“Did we take any breaks at all?”

“We _did_ go to the beach once,” Keiko said with a shrug.

“And you still haven’t put your eyeballs back in your head,” Makoto said, rolling her eyes.

“Hey, man, you asked _me_ out,” Keiko chuckled. “This is the only situation in which it’s okay to victim blame. You totally asked for it.”

“You’re the worst,” Makoto sighed. Keiko closed the distance between them, hoping for a kiss.

She got a palm to the forehead. “Brush your teeth.”

“Okay, _mom.”_

“Any time, Oedipus.”

“And you said I’m the worst,” Keiko huffed. She did as she was told and brushed her teeth. She could feel eyes on her as she passed. ‘Sure. _I’m_ the pervert.’

===

_Tuesday, September 6, After School_

Keiko just returned home from school to a pretty great smell. She discovered at a young age that throwing beef and broth into a cooker and letting it sit all day was a good way to ensure there’d be edible, non-instant food in the house for the next week. Keiko was almost certain she wasn’t going to want to cook every night, so having some already cooked beef around made sense. The recipe might’ve been overkill, she thought that morning. It made enough to feed 30 people. All wasn’t lost, though, because it gave her a good excuse to invite Makoto and Sae over for dinner. 

The apartment’s bottom floor had a full gym that meant no more locker rooms, no more sharing a locker, and no more creepy weirdos staring at her and Makoto while they tried to train. It wasn’t a constant problem and Makoto was able to shut down even the most aggressive creeps with a stare, but it was still irritating. Keiko _did_ miss the rush she felt when Makoto shut them down, though, and she had a secret wish that one of them would try something. ‘Oh, hey, look, the ground,’ Keiko thought to herself, then chuckled. 

She’d just changed into her gym clothes when she had a knock on the door. Part of her was annoyed that it threw off her focus, but another part was excited. ‘It’s my first visitor!’ Keiko checked the peephole and noticed Haru standing outside. ‘Well, maybe it’s just my landlord.’ Thinking of Haru as her landlord was a strange concept.

“Hey, Haru,” Keiko greeted as she opened the door. “Come on in.”

“I hope I’m not intruding,” Haru said. “I just wanted to check-in.”

“Well, I’m doing well. Makoto and Sae pitched in to get me a nice coffee maker and dishes yesterday so it’s officially my apartment.” Keiko couldn’t help but smile. Makoto and Sae had made up, at least partially. They still had some issues to work through but getting either of them to admit the issues existed in the first place was a huge step forward. 

It also meant Keiko spent her Monday afternoon alone. Nothing made her happier than to keep up her Monday nap tradition. Makoto found it part embarrassing and part flattering that Keiko treated her willful absence on a Monday afternoon like she’d given her the world’s best birthday present, which led to a discussion about birthdays, and led to Keiko realizing Makoto spent her birthday this year working on the newspaper.

It was a fairly miserable thing to discover, although Makoto assured her it was fine because Sae hadn’t remembered her birthday since before their dad died.

Haru broke Keiko out of her brief thoughts. “Are you as good with coffee as Sojiro?”

“God, no,” Keiko chuckled. “I’m just glad I'm not drinking microwave instant. The old man spoiled me.”

“He’s got a way about him, doesn’t he?” 

“I just meant the coffee but hey, at least you’re 18-”

Haru blushed. “That’s not what I meant!” 

“Sure.” Keiko grinned. Haru might’ve been scary, but discovering she was just as capable of having her balls busted as anyone else was nice. “Are you going to be around later? I have plans to go to the gym with Makoto but her and her sister are supposed to come over for dinner tonight. You’re welcome to join.”

“Are you sure?” Haru raised an eyebrow. “Sounds like it might be family time-”

“I made enough food to feed 30 people because I don’t understand portion control,” Keiko interrupted with a small laugh. “Plus, if you’re there, they’re less likely to tear each other’s heads off.”

Haru smiled warmly. “In that case, what time should I be over?”

===

_Evening_

The apartment smelled wonderful when Keiko got back, as it always did when she cooked like this. She hadn’t set out to impress anyone with her cooking, but she was looking forward to Sae walking through the door. ‘Is this what a normal person feels like?’ Keiko wasn’t used to something as mundane as cooking for her girlfriend and her sister to be so exciting. 

Makoto was grabbing a shower while Keiko prepared noodles to go with the meal. She stormed off after Keiko said “go get nude while I cook noodles,” which Keiko ultimately didn’t feel warranted the severe negative reaction. ‘If you don’t like stupid puns, don’t date a writer.’ Then Keiko chuckled to herself. ‘Oh, hey. More victim-blaming.’

A knock at the door took Keiko away from her thoughts, and she crossed from the counter to open the door.

Haru stood there, fidgeting absentmindedly with her skirt’s hem. 

“Welcome!” Keiko said with some light sarcasm like she wasn’t inviting her landlord inside.

“Wow, Keiko-chan.” Keiko felt accomplished with how impressed Haru sounded. ‘She has to be used to fancier dinners, right?’ “It smells incredible.”

“Thanks. It’s the only thing I know how to cook,” Keiko chuckled. “Makoto’s in the shower still. I haven’t showered yet.”

“I wasn’t going to say anything, but you are a bit ripe.” Haru made a show of holding her nose.

“Blame Makoto for taking _forever_ in the shower.”

“You have two showers,” Haru chuckled. “Did you forget?”

“Is it weird that I _did_ forget?” Keiko laughed nervously. “I’m still getting used to the place.”

Haru nodded, then gave Keiko a small smile. “I’m surprised you let Makoto shower alone.”

Keiko had to hide her face after the “eep” noise, and Haru laughed and laughed. Searching for a reprieve from her embarrassment, Keiko pulled out her phone and noticed she had a message from Sae.

 **Sae:** I won’t be able to make it

 **Keiko:** Damn Makoto was right you really are a disappointment

 **Sae:** …

 **Keiko:** that was too much. My bad

 **Sae:** Tell her it’s Akechi’s fault

 **Keiko:** that’s usually our go-to person to blame

 **Sae:** I don’t know how he keeps a job when he fucks up the most basic paperwork daily.

 **Keiko:** It certainly isn’t his looks or his personality.

 **Sae:** You aren’t even attracted to men

 **Keiko:** you don’t know that. I just haven’t found a man I’m attracted to yet

 **Sae:** ...you’re far too comfortable with me

 **Keiko:** weird. That’s almost exactly what Makoto said before we-

Keiko deleted that message and chose not to respond for both her and Makoto’s safety. 

“Welp,” Keiko sighed, startling Haru. “Sae’s not coming.”

“Oh, that’s a shame,” Haru fidgeted. “I was looking forward to meeting her.”

“Were you _really,_ though?” Keiko smiled. Haru started to respond, but Keiko shook her head. “She’s a prosecutor, and I know you well enough to know you did your homework before coming here.”

“I really didn’t want to explain to a prosecutor the reasons why I just recently became friendly with a reporter.” ‘She’s got a point,’ Keiko thought.

Keiko gave a reassuring smile. “You’re just supporting a friend by welcoming her girlfriend into your life. It’s called being a good person. Give yourself some credit.”

“You really are a good actress,” Haru’s frown turned upward, so at least Keiko had that going for her. “Are you sure you’re in the right business?”

“Ohya-san told me if I ever went on TV they’d be trying to turn me into an idol,” Keiko grinned. It made Haru laugh. “Honestly? With all the work Makoto puts me through, I could probably do it. I’ve got a foul mouth, though. No amount of makeup and skimpy clothes will cover that up.”

“There’s a market for that,” Haru said. “Shinjuku’s full of-”

Keiko started laughing too hard and muffled the rest of Haru’s words. “Not my scene. I should go break the news to Makoto.”

“Good luck,” Haru said, turning her attention to the couch, and then the television.

Keiko approached the bedroom door with some trepidation. She could hear Makoto milling about, so at least she was out of the shower. She probably wouldn’t take the news of Sae’s last-minute cancellation well.

She opened the door to a sight that short-circuited her brain, and immediately slammed it.

It probably startled Makoto, but Keiko didn’t care. Her girlfriend was bent at the waist, slipping on her undies and- well, Keiko was equal parts appreciative of the view and concerned because sitting down is definitely the superior way to put on underpants.

“Is everything okay over there?” Keiko heard Haru call from the living room.

“Just peachy- erm- I mean,” Keiko stammered. “Yes. Everything is fine.”

Makoto opened the door, giving Keiko a small smile, although it may have been a little more on the awkward side. 

Keiko must’ve been giving her bedroom eyes. “Uh, isn’t my sister here?”

That broke her out of her daze. “Uh, she just texted me. Akechi fucked up again at work. She’s gotta stay late and clean up his mess.” 

“That’s-” Makoto frowned. “That’s really not all that surprising. Now, go take a shower. You smell terrible.”

Keiko took a long shower that featured more impure thoughts than she knew she had in her brain. She left it grateful that this apartment had amazing water pressure, grateful that she now had her own place to do whatever she wanted, and most importantly, thankful for leg day.

‘I might write a book on how wonderful of an idea leg day is.’

Makoto and Haru were carrying on like Keiko _didn’t_ just take 45 minutes in the shower. ‘Makoto took forever, too, so maybe she understands.’ Keiko stood in the hallway trying to eavesdrop on their conversation.’

“I just had a single day where I was thinking so much more clearly,” Makoto must’ve been having a veiled conversation about the Phantom Thieves. “I mean, you probably saw us together at school and we spent even more time together outside of that.” ‘Or not,’ Keiko thought. She stayed in a spot in the hallway to see what Makoto had to say. “I’d been thinking about her a lot, and I’ll be honest. I didn’t know I _could_ feel that way about anybody.”

“That’s very romantic, Mako-chan,” Haru said. She sounded like she was relishing in the tale. 

Keiko peered around the corner and, unfortunately, caught Haru’s eye. “Have you guys, well, you know?”

“We haven’t,” Makoto said. “I don’t even know if that’s something she thinks about. We make out a lot, and I know she finds me attractive, but-”

‘Oh, Makoto,’ Keiko thought, blushing from her hiding spot. ‘If you only knew.’ 

“We never really had that discussion.”

“Are you not having it because she’s not into it, or because you’re both too awkward to bring it up?”

“Hey! We aren’t that-”

“Uh,” Keiko interrupted. “Considering I’ve been eavesdropping on your conversation, I’d say we’re both extremely awkward.”

Haru started laughing. “See? Now you’ve had the conversation and you can both continue to claim ignorance.”

“Did you know I was standing there?”

Haru shrugged. “I got lucky.”

Meanwhile, Makoto’s face was buried in her arms out of embarrassment. “Thanks, Haru,” she said sardonically. 

“If you need an answer to your question,” Keiko said. “I walked in on you bending over and it was the most wonderful thing I’ve ever seen in my entire life.”

“In front of company?” Makoto was lucky their only neighbor was sitting on the couch.

“Hey, if Haru wants to pry, she’s gonna hear all of it.”

“I’ll be sure to pry more often, then.” Haru giggled.

Keiko made her way to the kitchen and gestured for them to follow. “Come on, enough talking. We need to eat.”

Makoto nodded. “We should try and sleep early, too.”

Haru sighed. “Why did they schedule our flight so early?”

===

_Wednesday, September 7, Early Morning_

The airport’s sterile-white atmosphere and fluorescent lighting did very little to lessen Keiko’s migraine, which was exacerbated by the fact that Makoto was terrified of heights _and_ a first-time flyer. ‘How nice of Becky to make sure we got to sit next to each other on the plane,’ Keiko thought. She gave out a long sigh.

“Okay,” Makoto broke Keiko out of her daze. “We have everybody except Ryuji-”

“I’m here!” Ryuji limp-sprinted down the hallway carrying a giant backpack that would have looked more at home on a camping trip. Had Ren not caught his scruff, he would’ve crashed into his classmates.

“Ya know, you could avoid making an ass of yourself by waking up on time, for once,” Shiho snorted.

Ann rolled her eyes and spoke with biting sarcasm. “Oh, yes, Shiho Suzui, who’s never slept in _once_ in her entire life.”

“It’s not my fault I have trouble sleeping,” Shiho sighed. The mood became a bit less jovial.

They didn’t have time to mope around. Makoto was too nervous to let them. She addressed the section of the class she was in charge of, ordering everybody by seating arrangements.

Keiko was confused when Makoto lined her next to Ryuji. “What the hell?”

“Sorry, Keiko,” and Makoto looked sorry. “I have some business to discuss with Ren and I thought it would be a good distraction for the plane ride.”

Keiko started to speak, then stopped. She wanted to complain at first, but her vision was already spotty and she’d probably want to spend the eight-hour flight sleeping off the migraine. Given Ryuji’s constant yawning, it sounded like he’d want to do the same. 

“Okay,” Keiko said. “Just let me know if you need Dramamine. Sae warned me that you’ve never flown.”

“I’ll be okay,” Makoto smiled back reassuringly.

Keiko and Ryuji made awkward small talk while trying to board the plane. Despite being on friendly terms, they didn’t have much in common and Keiko knew better than to confide anything in Ryuji Sakamoto. Ren told her many times how loose his lips were. 

“You ever fly before?” Ryuji asked as they took their seats. He shoved his backpack into the overhead compartment. Keiko’s carry-on fit under her feet.

“Not out of the country,” Keiko said. “We usually fly to visit my grandfather, though. He lives up in Hokkaido, so it’s not a very long flight.”

“I’ve never been on a plane, but it doesn’t seem all that scary,” Ryuji said, slouching back in his seat. “Not with everything that’s gone down this semester.”

“No kidding,” Keiko said. She’d fought off certain death enough times that flying didn’t have her nearly as nervous as it normally did. It helped that the usual airport craziness was avoided by the early flight-time. “You have any idea what Ren and Makoto are talking about?”

Ryuji shrugged. “Not sure. I know Makoto asked him for help with something, but she’s bein’ really vague about it. I figured it’s none of my business.”

“Figures,” Keiko replied. “I was expecting to spend the entire flight keeping her calm. I hope Ren can handle it.”

“I’m sure he can,” Ryuji replied. “But hey, I’m gonna catch up on some sleep.”

Keiko nodded, and he slipped a blindfold over his eyes. She did the same a few minutes later.

===

_Morning (Hawaii Time)_

Keiko stirred when a voice came over the intercom. “You are now free to move about the cabin.”

Ryuji, who had the aisle seat, was looking down at a Nintendo Switch while wearing headphones. Keiko fought a pang of jealousy. He was playing Breath of the Wild, and playing quite poorly from what she could see. 

At least her migraine was gone. 

Since apparently, they were now free to move about the cabin, Keiko decided now made a good time to use the restroom. Her movement jarred Ryuji.

“Whoa, you’re awake,” he said, setting the Switch down on his lap. 

“I miss anything?”

“Nah,” he shrugged. “They came around and asked if we wanted drinks- I think. I’m lucky Ann’s sittin’ behind us.”

“You could’ve woken me,” Keiko said. “I’m fluent.” She yawned and stretched her arms, bumping the light above them. _“I could have ordered your drink.”_

Ryuji chuckled. “Yup, no clue what you just said.”

Keiko now understood how Makoto felt on occasion. Shujin taught English classes, and Ryuji really has no excuse to not know any of the language. “Anyway, I’m going to the bathroom.” Ryuji leaned over to let her through.

Ren and Makoto sat a few rows up from them. Keiko couldn’t make much of their conversation until she got close.

“-overthinking it, Makoto. I’m not gifted, or anything like the rumors claim. I’m just attentive and-”

“Keiko, you’re awake,” Makoto said, eyes wide like she was caught doing something she shouldn’t have. 

‘Adorable,’ Keiko thought. Had she not had this exact conversation with Ren a few days ago, it probably would have looked like Makoto was cheating. 

“Hey, Keiko,” Ren said. “Want to sit next to Makoto? I think we’ve covered pretty much everything.”

“Are you sure?” ‘Did she take notes?’ Keiko noted a closed notebook in Makoto’s lap. 

“Makoto, you’re more than ready for whatever life throws at you,” Ren said with maybe a slight eye roll. “You’re my second in command for a reason.”

“But this is so different-”

“It’s not,” Ren shrugged. “It’s really not.”

Keiko cleared her throat, getting their attention back. “I’m going to go to the bathroom, then I’ll go back and grab my bag.”

She did as she said and returned minutes later, still in a small state of shock at how small the bathroom for an eight-hour flight was. 

“You and Ren get whatever business you needed to talk about figured out?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. ‘She was definitely asking Ren about something personal.’ 

Makoto blushed. “We did.”

“What were you two talking about?” Keiko grinned. “It sounded important.”

‘I’ll let her off the hook, just this once.’ “How’s the flight been so far?”

“It’s been good,” Makoto said. “It’s weird. I don’t normally handle heights all that well, but being up in a plane doesn’t feel that different from being in a building.” 

“We haven’t had much turbulence this flight,” Keiko said. “This is as smooth as it ever gets. Landing is really fun. I’ll let you have the window seat if you think you can look down.”

“I’ll do it,” Makoto said. “I’m sorry I made you sit next to Ryuji for so much of the trip.”

Keiko shrugged. “It worked out well. I wasn’t feeling well and Ryuji wanted to sleep. I feel a lot better after napping and you seem to be doing better than I expected.”

“Sitting next to Ren made taking off much less nerve-wracking,” Makoto said. 

Keiko started digging through her bag. She brought a deck of cards with her thinking they would come in handy on the plane, and her premonitions were correct. They still had an hour before the scheduled landing time. 

The only game either of them knew was blackjack, but it kept them busy for the time they had left. 

Makoto was awestruck as they approached Waikiki.

“It’s all so blue!” Makoto said as they landed. “I didn’t know the ocean could be that blue.”

Keiko wished she had a snarky or informative response, but all she could do was nod. It was a pretty incredible view.

===

_Afternoon_

It was just like Shujin Academy to send their second-years on a trip to Hawaii, get them a flight and a place to stay and make no other plans. They couldn’t get a good group rate on a tour of the Pearl Harbor museum according to Kawakami, so that got thrown out the window. Keiko meant no disrespect when she had a minor celebration when Kawakami told her.

“Grandpa’s an anti-war World War 2 buff,” Keiko said. “You know how grandparents will buy their granddaughter little baby books? He gave me The Big Book of World War 2 and told me after I finished, we could watch a documentary together.”

“That honestly sounds like a nice way to educate and bond with your granddaughter,” Kawakami looked at Keiko quizzically. Makoto and Haru were supposed to meet up with her to discuss how to keep everyone busy for their four nights in Hawaii.

“I was four!”

“The more I learn about you, the more things make sense,” Makoto said, sitting at a desk, thumbing through a directory of restaurants and tourist attractions that might not lose their heads if a large group of barely-English-speaking Japanese students showed up unannounced. “Isn’t the Big Book of World War 2 basically an encyclopedia?”

“I can’t believe you’ve heard of it,” Keiko said. 

“No wonder you’re so close,” Kawakami sighed. “You’re both nerds.”

Haru couldn’t hide her laugh, and it drew a look from the teacher. “What’s so funny?”

Haru shifted her eyes from Makoto to Keiko. “Oh, I was just thinking about an inappropriate joke I told Sakamoto-kun after we got off the plane.”

“Why don’t you share the joke with us, Haru?” ‘Makoto, you _cannot_ use that tone when other people are in the room.’ Keiko almost had to fan herself.

Haru was unflappable, however. “Well, at the risk of getting Ryuji-kun in trouble, I caught him staring down Takamaki-san’s shirt. I asked him if the carpet matches the drapes.”

“Haru, that’s highly inappropriate-”

“It probably gets worse.” She shrugged. “I told him I meant to ask if _his_ carpet matches the drapes. I’ve never made a boy run away that quickly before.”

Kawakami sighed. “I asked for our two most trustworthy and respectable third years, and this is what they send me.”

“The bar for behavior with third years is laughably low,” Haru said, hiding a laugh behind her hand.

“The bar’s not low, they just put it in the wrong place,” Kawakami replied. She seemed to be enjoying the hotel’s bed, and Keiko made a note that her financial situation was probably still not great. Kasumi was still bringing her lunch every day. 

“What’re you getting at?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. She opted to stand, still antsy from the long flight. She wasn’t feeling jet-lagged at all, and this was technically the time she and Makoto usually worked out.

“I’ve only been here a few years, but the quality of education you kids are getting is, quite frankly, bullshit,” Kawakami sat up. “I should’ve known things weren’t heading in a good direction when they hired a 22-year-old recent-graduate with no references.”

“You’re a great teacher, though,” Makoto said. “Controversy aside, you’re by far the most well-liked teacher at Shujin.”

“Low bar,” Kawakami laughed sardonically. “I could get fired for having this conversation with students. What the hell am I going to do with all these kids for five days?”

The three younger girls looked at each other. Keiko judged that Haru and Makoto didn’t have any real ideas, either. 

“None of you have any ideas?”

“Isn’t pot legal in Hawaii?”

Keiko felt every eye in the room on her. Makoto and Kawakami were glaring. Haru looked concerned. 

“Makoto? Please, don’t let Keiko out of your sight.”

“Didn’t plan to,” Makoto said. Her glare softened, and they split after Kawakami told them to send her a text if they had any great ideas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone notices that parallels with Sae and Dojima and Akechi and Adachi, I noticed them as of writing this chapter. It was not done on purpose but oh boy am I running with this. 
> 
> Part of Keiko in this chapter is just an outright self-insert for me: I have a terrible habit of cooking things in massive amounts and then eating just that thing the rest of the month. I have 7 lbs of already cooked beef in the fridge as I type this. Guess who doesn't have to figure out dinner for a month?
> 
> A note from my beta: "God. I never thought I’d enjoy reading a fic where the phantom thieves help a friend move in. Maybe I’ll do an adult AU."
> 
> I consider that a glowing recommendation. Thanks for reading! For my fellow rural midwesterners, stay safe in the coming snowstorms.


	21. Hawaii (Part One)

_ Wednesday, September 7, Afternoon _

“I’m just saying, Mako, if I get caught smoking here, I won’t have to go in front of your sister,” Keiko begged Makoto to help her find somebody who was of age to buy weed.

“You’re not smoking!” Makoto’s facial expressions betrayed her tone. ‘I hope she knows I’m just trying to get a rise out of her.’ Keiko knew from many discussions that smoking of any sort would be a dealbreaker, more so after hearing about Haru’s mother. 

“Fine,” Keiko said with a mock pout. “But we could find somebody to get us booze. If I’m gonna be bored, I might as well have some fun.”

Makoto sighed. “I really don’t think you should-”

“Mako, why are you so lame?”

“You didn’t let me finish.” Makoto borrowed Keiko’s mischievous ‘I’m-doing-something-stupid’ grin

They were used to being alone in an apartment, but there was something different about sharing a hotel room together. Deadbolted doors would prevent anyone from catching them sleeping in the same bed.

Well, as long as Ann and Shiho shouting at each other didn’t prevent them from sleeping. It was an afternoon, but so far Ann was up to an “Ugh!” count of 13 from what Keiko had counted. Makoto counted 11 but she started paying attention after Keiko. 

“What are they even arguing over?” Makoto almost went and knocked on the door adjoining their rooms to check in on them.

“Modern problems require modern solutions,” Keiko said, then she grinned. “You two keep it down in there!”    
“They can fucking hear us, Shiho.”

Makoto and Keiko could hear the eye-roll through the door. There was a knock moments later. 

“Hey,” Ann stood there, flustered. “Sorry about that.”

Keiko grinned. “No problem. We were entertained. I just figured we should step in before Shiho had you asking for a new roommate.”

Ann chuckled. “She keeps trying to steal my panties.”

Keiko and Makoto shared a look. “Uh, what?”

“Apparently, she thinks an American businessman will trade liquor for panties.”

“I don’t think that’s really a thing in America,” Keiko said. “I do appreciate the entrepreneurial spirit.”

“Haru already figured out the liquor situation-”

“Fucking Haru and Prez coming through in the clutch?” Shiho appeared behind Ann, shooting a hopefully clean pair of red panties into their room with the original aim of landing them on Ann’s head. “This is unheard of.”

Keiko picked the panties up off the ground and handed them to Ann. “You dropped these.”

“She’s used to that-” 

Ann snatched them back and glared at Shiho. “I’m going to kill you.”

Shiho made a show of trying to get the panties back. Keiko could tell by how easily Ann was dodging her. “See, when you talk like that I’m inclined to believe you, and contrary to popular belief, I no longer want to-” 

“Fucking hell,” Ann said. “You can’t just drop that into the middle of a conversation.”

“I will choose my own coping mechanisms, thank you very much,” Shiho said. “So, how’s Haru getting booze?”

Makoto laid out the plan. Haru found a Big Bang Burger in Hawaii that was just a block away from the hotel. Ideally, she could go inside and find an of-age employee who is willing to play ball. 

“Does Kawakami have any idea?”

Keiko shrugged. “Even if she did, I could probably blackmail her out of it.” Kawakami was probably one ‘Becky-sensei’ away from snapping.

“That’s your solution for everything,” Makoto sighed.

“Do you just have blackmail material on everybody?” Shiho raised an eyebrow, interested.

“Not everybody,” Keiko said. “Like, you and Ann. I’ve got nothing unless you’re going to tell me that you’re playing the same  _ very good friends _ game we are.”

“Uh,” Ann had shifty eyes. 

“Unless Blondie’s got something to tell me, I think we’re good on that front,” Shiho chuckled. “I wouldn’t dare step on Ryuji’s-”

“I don’t have a crush on Ryuji!” Ann shouted far too loudly.

“Well, I hope he’s not on this floor, because you just crushed his hopes and dreams,” Shiho laughed.

‘Ann sure sounds like she might have a crush on Ryuji. Haru, too, for that matter,’ Keiko thought. Although, she might’ve just been reading too much into Haru’s comments. Perhaps asking him if he also bleached his pubes was an innocent question. 

Keiko decided to steer away from the awkward topic. “So, how are you planning on spending your time in Hawaii?”

Ann huffed. “I’m the only English speaker that’s not terrifying, so probably fielding requests from everyone to ‘be their best friend’ for the few days.”

“Uh, Mako and I both speak English,” Keiko raised an eyebrow. “As do Ren and Haru. And Kawakami, who would frankly be a better time than pretty much everyone else.”

Makoto snorted. “Yeah, just ask your-”

“Watch it, Niijima.” Keiko’s glare didn’t have the desired effects, and Makoto just laughed harder.

“Anyway, the keyword there was ‘terrifying.’ Word got out that Makoto almost broke that guy’s arm.” Ann had to hold her hand over Shiho’s mouth to prevent her from saying something undoubtedly stupid. She settled for going for a fist bump. 

“He was threatening Eiko,” Makoto said. “Was I supposed to just let him attack her?”

Ann shrugged. “It was Eiko spreading the rumor. Apparently, you’re her  _ hero.” _ Ann emphasized “hero” in a dreamy voice. “You’re basically Shujin’s Spiderman.”

“Huh. I thought Eiko was mad at me for that,” Makoto said. “I thought the Phantom Thieves were Shujin’s Spiderman.”

Ann leered. “Should’ve worn a mask. People would leave you alone that way.”

“You’re more like One Punch Man,” Shiho said, laughing at her own joke, potentially to cover up the fact that nobody else laughed.

“It’s better to be feared than loved, I guess,” Makoto said.

“I thought the quote was ‘I want people to be afraid of how much they love me?’” Keiko snickered.

“No, that’s just you,” Makoto said, and for Keiko at least, the air in the room froze.

“Uh,” Shiho grabbed Ann’s wrist. “We can leave you two alone for a bit.”

“Wait-” Keiko tried to stop them but Shiho slammed the door. “Damn it.”

The atmosphere became notably less tense when Makoto flopped backward on the bed to laugh. She was laying sideways, her legs dangling off the bed and holding her up on the floor partly. 

The warmth behind the accompanying smile made Keiko feel much less self-conscious, so much so that she felt comfortable enough to lay down next to her in the same position. 

“That probably would have been much less awkward if Shiho didn’t slam the door,” Makoto said, her voice light. 

“Did you mean it, though?” Keiko hated how much she sounded like a little girl at that moment. She’d worked hard on holding a professional cadence, but she was so caught off guard.

Makoto looked over at her, still wearing a small smile, staring right into Keiko’s soul. “Is it that hard to believe? I’ve been waiting for the right time to say it for months.”

“But we haven’t even-” Keiko gestured wildly. “Yet.”

It drew a laugh, and Makoto draped an arm over her girlfriend and planted a kiss on her cheek. “Yet.”

Keiko felt a rush of feelings she didn’t have a good grasp on. “I feel like you should say it first.”

“Does it really matter who says it first?”

“I mean, you kind of said it already,” Keiko shrugged. “But I’d like you to repeat it. You know, for confirmation. ‘If your girlfriend says she loves you, check her sources.’”

“Are you ever not thinking about work?” Makoto said, rolling her eyes.

“Isn’t my dedication part of what drew you to me?” Keiko meant it sarcastically, but Makoto responded with a thoughtful look and a ‘hmm’ noise.

“I don’t think it was your dedication,” she said. She’d grasped Keiko’s opposite hand, rubbing circles in her palm with her thumb. “I think it’s your guts.”

“I mean, it’s not as large as it once was but-”

“Oh, be quiet,” Makoto huffed. “You know what I mean.”

“I do,” Keiko chuckled. “Maybe I’m projecting because your dedication  _ is _ what drew me to you.”

“My dedication to what?” 

“What’s right. Protecting the people you care about.” Keiko turned so she could look Makoto in the eye. “You’ve turned into mama bear Makoto in the short time we’ve been together.”

Her face flushed. “Mama bear?”

“You tried to break a grown man’s arm for a girl you’re  _ barely _ friends with,” Keiko said. “I’m actually impressed you have enough restraint to let Akechi stay alive.”

“For now.”

Keiko laughed at the determination in Makoto’s eyes. “For now.” They laid in silence, just listening to each other’s breathing for a bit. “You know who else is a bear?”

Makoto raised an eyebrow. “Who?”

“Buchi-kun!” Keiko cackled maniacally.

“You’re the worst,” Makoto said after a sigh. “And Buchi-kun is not a bear, he’s a panda, which is more closely related to a raccoon than a traditional bear.”

Keiko was struck with a giggle fit.

“Mako?” Keiko ran a hand through her girlfriend’s short hair. 

“Yes?”

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

They didn’t get to enjoy the moment for too long. 

===

_ Evening _

The couple who just newly professed their love jolted out of their daze when somebody knocked at their door. Keiko made it to her feet first and answered, finding Haru standing there.

“Did I interrupt something?”

Keiko self-consciously wiped a satisfied smile off her face but she couldn’t stop her cheeks from getting color at getting caught. “Nope,” she lied.

Haru mercifully ignored her embarrassment. “I was just thinking we need to find some kind of activity. Some of the students are still jet-lagged, so they’ll be asleep early, but we have some that seem to be getting- uh, rowdy.”

“And where’s Kawakami?”

Haru laughed awkwardly. “At the hotel bar? She said something about not getting paid enough for this.”

“You and Makoto aren’t getting paid at all,” Keiko raised an eyebrow.

“See? I’m glad I’m not the only one who had that thought. Like, I get that it’s a free trip to Hawaii but most people would have said no if they knew they were just babysitting like this.” 

“And what about you?”

“I’m very glad to be away from Japan,” Haru frowned. “Sugimura tried to have my passport revoked. He doesn’t trust me not to cheat.”

“Are you really even with him, though?” Makoto joined the conversation from the bed. “You’re bound by a contract that won’t go into effect until you’re married.”

“That’s something that’s crossed my mind but now we’re off-topic.” Haru moved towards the other side of the room to sit on a lounge chair. All of the student rooms were set up like a standard hotel room: two double beds and an open area on the other side near the windows, where a couch and a lounge chair made up a small sitting space. Each room also had a tiny fridge. “So, plans?”

“Well, this sounds like something for you two to do without me so I’ll just-” Keiko started her way towards Ann and Shiho’s door but Makoto caught her, wrapping arms around her waist.

“Don’t you want to stay and help?” Makoto’s voice was just suggestive enough that Keiko had to relent. 

“I-” Keiko stammered. Makoto’s mouth was a little too close to her ear. “Actually, your heavy breathing gives me an idea.”

Makoto let go and gave a defeated sigh. “That was supposed to be sexy.”

“It was until you started mouth breathing in my ear,” Keiko said, earning a giggle from Haru. 

“I thought you were doing a good job, Mako-chan,” Haru chirped. “What’s your idea?”

Keiko shrugged. “The beach has fire pits every hundred yards or so. I highly doubt Ren doesn’t know how to start a fire. We could tell ghost stories.”

“That’s a brilliant idea!” Haru sounded far more excited than Keiko expected. She was a surprising person, Keiko thought. “I already have a few I can tell.”

“Me too,” Keiko grinned. “I had a records request denied by the Japan National Health Department. I didn’t sleep for weeks.” 

“That doesn’t sound scary-”

“It’s not,” Makoto sighed. “But she really didn’t sleep for weeks.”

===

_ Late Evening _

Makoto and Haru weren’t as used to being told to “fuck off” as Keiko was, so they were dispirited by the non-reaction their plan received. The usual suspects were down, though, so they wouldn’t be huddled around a fire alone. They had Ren, Ryuji, Ann, and Shiho, who all seemed anxious to do something besides sit in their room and watch concerned TV anchors talk at length about a presidential candidate who reminded them all of a much dumber, lazier Masayoshi Shido.

A few other students tagged along. Nakaoka and Takahase were playing cards alone, and Hikari Shimizu’s roommate locked her out of the room to be alone with her boyfriend. 

Mishima tagged along without anybody asking him to because of course, he did. 

Ren  _ did _ know how to start a fire and quickly had one roaring with some driftwood they were able to find along the shore. It was dark enough around them that the fire lit the circle and a single palm tree above them. The only evidence of the ocean was the sound of crashing waves. 

“Who wants to go first?” Haru asked the group.

Shimizu snorted. “I have a terrifying story.”

Keiko caught Ren and Makoto sharing a concerned look. If Shimizu chose now to unveil that she remembered her change of heart as Keiko remembered the attempts on her own shadow, the whole operation could be suspended.

Shimizu continued. “Granted, this kind of makes me look like a piece of shit. I had a crush on a first-year. Anyone knows me knows, heh, men, not my forte.”

Ren and Makoto both let out a sigh of relief. Keiko couldn’t help but do the same. ‘Whew. She’s just stupid,’ she thought.

“I catch him talkin’ to Fujioka, and I dunno if any of ya know Kaori but she’s like, the tiniest human. Anyway, I end up scarin’ the shit outta her because I don’t want her talkin’ to my man, and this fuckin’ mama bear shows up outta nowhere,” she pointed at Makoto. “Scariest shit I’ve ever seen. Y’all don’t know fear until yer face to face with a sleeveless Prez who apparently didn’t save enough guns for the rest of us. Crackin’ her knuckles ‘n shit. Then Miyahara’s right there, ‘n I’m like, am I gonna end up on the front page cuz of this?”

‘Ha! She called Makoto mama bear,’ Keiko couldn’t hold in her laughter.

“Speakin’ of Miyahara, is somethin’ weird goin’ on with you two?” She shifted how she was standing to put a hand on her hip.

“They’re just  _ very good friends,” _ Shiho said with biting sarcasm. “I mean, Ann and I have been like that for years, and she’s never once let me kiss her.”

“Shiho!” Ann squealed. Shimizu was too busy laughing while Ryuji accepted fist bumps from Nakaoka and Takahase, for some reason. “If you thought Makoto was scary, Shiho has to share a room with me the rest of the trip.”

Shiho grinned at Ann. “Oh, Blondie, that’s cute you think I’m scared, but you’re locked in here with me, not the other way around.”

“Can you two not?” Makoto broke her silence. Keiko had watched her nearly chew through her inner lip while Shimizu told her scary story. “Haru, don’t you have a good story?”

“Lots of them,” Haru said. “Some of them are true.”

“Tell us one of the true ones,” Nakaoka said. “I bet it’s not actually scary.”

Keiko saw Haru’s eyes narrow and took this opportunity to ask Makoto to take a walk with her.

Makoto gave her a thankful look and followed Keiko towards the shore. 

“I figured you wouldn’t want to hear whatever story Haru was about to tell,” Keiko said once they were farther away from the group. 

Makoto nodded. “Thanks. I was worried Shimizu was going to out us.”

“Us, as in ‘us,’ or us as in the Phantom Thieves?”

“Yes,” Makoto deadpanned. “At least with you and me we might just have to deal with people who aren’t cool with who we are, but I’m not even sure I care about that. The Phantom Thieves stuff could get us all jail time.”

“Hey, I’m right there with you,” Keiko said. “I’m sure they’d find a way to pin an aiding-and-abetting charge on me.”

“Look at us, creating our own scary stories,” Makoto laughed. Keiko couldn’t see her face all that well, although the moon lit their path. “Think they’ll let us share a cell?”

“I wouldn’t bet on it,” Keiko shrugged. They were now far enough away from the group that she felt comfortable holding Makoto’s hand. “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” Makoto squeezed her hand. “What brought that on?”

“It seemed like the thing to say,” Keiko wasn’t sure a smile had much use when it was too dark for anyone to see, but she couldn’t keep it off her face. “It’s pretty romantic.”

“What is?”

Keiko dragged them a bit closer to the waves where the sand was damp so she could dig her toes in. “You being a thief, me being an accomplice. Two lovers fighting in the name of truth. It’s like a movie.”

Makoto let go of Keiko’s hand and stopped walking. 

“What?”

“I think you just gave me diabetes.” Makoto continued walking, scurrying forward to grasp her hand again. 

They walked further and further from the hotel before they hit a point where they needed to turn back. It was a better way to spend their night than hearing scary stories. Everyone had turned in by the time they made it back. Makoto and Haru had to do rounds, making sure everyone was in their rooms.

This gave Keiko time to check on her phone. The best part about Hawaii was they’d have WiFi basically everywhere, but it also meant having to use a chat app instead of texting, so everyone had strange usernames.

**_You’ve been added to the group “Hawaii shenanigans”_ **

**Harufying:** I thought I’d make a group so we’re all on the same page. I’m stopping by a Big Bang Burger tomorrow. I’d prefer to have an English speaker with me.

**Harufying:** QueenMako, can you please add Ren and Ryuji to the group? 

Keiko checked the people in the group. Pannther must’ve been Ann, QueenMako was Makoto. Keiko had no idea who RiseFan2201 was.

**SendNews:** who tf is RiseFan2201?

**RiseFan2201:** Uh. Shiho. I made this account when I was 12.

**SendNews:** You can change your screen name really easy

**RiseFan2201:** i like this sn, tbh

**_Skullkid has joined the group._ **

**SendNews:** No fucking way. Is Skullkid Ryuji?

**Skullkid:** Oh. 

**SendNews:** You used to bully Futaba, you asshole!

**Skullkid:** she was just as mean to me

**RiseFan2201:** I don’t want to distract from Ryuji’s past wrongdoings but has anyone heard Rise’s new album?

**SendNews:** it’s very good. It sounds nothing like the typical idol drivel

**QueenMako:** are we just ignoring Ryuji

**Harufying:** Rise’s such a nice person

**RiseFan2201:** YOU KNOW RISETTE?

**Harufying:** She’s an acquaintance of my mentor

**Pannther:** Shiho has a giant crush on her

**SendNews:** who doesn’t honestly

**Harufying:** agreed

**Pannther:** but have you seen that guy she drags around? *swoon*

**SendNews:** Not my type, but I’ve met Narukami when securing a publisher. Super nice, extremely talented. 

**Joker:** he stole my dear Risette from me

**SendNews:** is that why you’re dating her doppelganger?

**Joker:** I have a type, okay?

**SendNews:** I thought that type was anything that walks

**Joker:** this is the wrong place for accusations

**Skullkid:** here I am just waiting for trickle-down banging to take effect

**Harufying:** Sakamoto-kun, you’d be much more attractive if you didn’t talk

**Alibaba:** GET TOLD, RYUJI

**SendNews:** Futaba, how the hell did you get in here?

**Alibaba:** I see all. I know all. I could shut down the power for the whole island if I wanted to but if they found out I was in Japan, somebody would probably find oil under Osaka and Japan would be in need of more freedom

**Alibaba:** If yall needed a fake ID, you coulda just asked me for one

**Joker:** how would we sneak that on a plane?

**Alibaba:** keester it

===

_ Thursday, September 8, Morning _

Haru and Keiko snuck off while Kawakami nursed a hangover, and Makoto bullshitted her way through getting everyone fed. The hotel had a free breakfast buffet, something that would probably save their lives. Students would be on their own for lunch and dinner, but luckily there were plenty of cheap dining options around. Waikiki was such a tourist destination that they apparently had a lot of the same fast food chains as the mainland. Keiko was most excited to try Mexican food, mostly because of the severe negative reaction Makoto had when she saw the calorie count for a single burrito. 

The trip this morning was business, though. Keiko had Big Bang Burger enough times to know she didn’t want to spend a penny on it in Hawaii. She and Haru found a little cafe that reminded them a bit of LeBlanc in the block between the hotel and their destination. Ironically, the coffee worked as a sedative for what they’d see.

_ “Fuck you, dude!”  _ An angry blonde woman shouted at a portly native Hawaiian looking man dressed in slightly nicer clothes. The blonde woman, who Keiko’s inner dialogue dubbed Angry Ann, seemed none too happy.  _ “You chase away all your help, call me in to cover the morning after I closed, and then bitch that I look tired?” _

_ “You’re our only other keyholder,” _ the man yelled, giving chase as she stormed out of the restaurant.  _ “It’s not my fault kids these days don’t want to work!” _

‘Well, he’s lost my sympathy,’ Keiko thought.

They were standing across the street while the events went down.

_ “This ain’t worth your $7 per hour!” _ Angry Ann shouted back at him as she stormed across the street. The man, defeated, trudged back into the store.

“I only caught part of that,” Haru said. “Is your English better than mine?”

_ “Loads.” _ Keiko replied. The woman walked right past them when Keiko decided to press her luck.  _ “Excuse me, ma’am?” _

Angry Ann’s face didn’t look all that angry.  _ “Ya need somethin’?” _

_ “Yes, actually,”  _ Keiko’s wheels were turning. Her acting skills were lesser when she wasn’t speaking Japanese.  _ “I’m actually a reporter from a newspaper in Japan.” _ ‘Not a lie,’ Keiko held a chuckle to herself.  _ “I have reason to believe the owner of the Big Bang Burger as a whole refuses things like reasonable work hours, paid overtime, and the forty-hour workweek. I’m technically on vacation, but I’d love to know if you’re seeing the same thing here.” _

_ “Huh.Good to see I’m not the only one who hates that stupid fuck,”  _ she said.

_ “Uh, my friend is actually his daughter.” _

Haru chuckled.  _ “My English is not as good. I’m not a fan of my father either.” _

Angry Ann breathed a sigh of relief.  _ “Thank god for that. Open mouth, insert foot.” _

_ “Is there a coffee shop around here? I already had a cup but I’ll never say no to more.”  _ Keiko and Haru shared a nod. Haru wanted more coffee, too.

_ “It’s all tourist stuff over here but Pete’s is alright,”  _ Angry Ann said.

She led them to another coffee shop a little further away from the hotel. It was a bit trendier in style with a lot of exposed brick on the interior, and those fancy circular stools that rode up the back. They weren’t very comfortable in Keiko’s experience but they looked cool. Luckily, the booth seating in the shop was still comfortable.

They all got their coffee and took a seat.

_ “I’ll introduce us. I’m Keiko Miyahara and she’s Haru Okumura.” _

_ “Nice to meet you. I’m Anna LaMoille.” _

Then Haru rattled something off and nobody knew what she was saying. She must’ve noticed from the looks she was getting.  _ “Sorry. My French is better than my English.” _

_ “Oh, right,”  _ Anna shrugged. Keiko was struck by her bright blue eyes. She still couldn’t decide if she actually looked like Ann or not. The name was certainly a coincidence.  _ “I mean, my family came from France but that was 400 years ago.” _

_ “America is weird,” _ Keiko mumbled to herself. She pulled out her phone.  _ “Care if I record? I’ve never had to translate notes from English to Japanese before, so the recording is purely for me. Nobody else ever hears it.” _

_ “Fine by me,” _ Anna said.  _ “If anything, now there’s some documentation of all this.” _

And then she laid out the years of abuse at the hands of Okumura Foods, and it wasn’t just her own abuse. Her manager was quite the sympathetic figure, a man bound to his job because of the salary and how expensive life had become on the island. 

_ “I don’t have to work, you see,”  _ Anna said.  _ “But I like to. I’ve stuck around for a few years, but I’m 21 now and I’m almost done with my degree. It’s just a shame to see a place like that spiral, and it only started after Okumura bought it.” _

_ “What was it before?” _

_ “It was a landmark,” _ Anna recalled.  _ “One of the oldest restaurants in Hawaii. Old Man Hau and his wife ran it for 80 years. Your father swooped in before the community could organize. We were going to run it in his honor.” _

_ “Are there any old news stories on it? I could cite them,”  _ Keiko would be interested in reading old local stories anyway. She found it fascinating. 

_ “They should be online,” _ Anna said.  _ “Library’s got ‘em, too.” _

_ “Thank you, Anna,” _ Keiko said.  _ “This doesn’t seem like an easy thing to talk about.” _

_ “It’s just the American way right now,” _ Anna sighed.  _ “The big guy comes in and either buys up the little guy, or drives their prices so far down that the little guy can’t compete. I’m forced to work for the big guy, and shocker, the big guy is a fucking asshole.” _ She gestures towards Haru.  _ “No offense to you. You seem lovely.” _

Haru giggled.  _ “I feel-” _ “Keiko, how do you say vindicated?”

_ “She feels vindicated,” _ Keiko said.  _ “Anyway, we initially had another reason to go to Big Bang Burger.” _ She pocketed her phone after shutting off the recording.

_ “We need someone to buy alcohol,” _ Haru said.  _ “We’re on a school trip.” _

_ “Our chaperone is more interested in hitting on dudes at the bar than her students,”  _ Keiko shrugged.  _ “You’re welcome to hang out with us if you’d want to.” _

_ “I’m a little old to be hanging out with kids, but-” _ Anna shrugged.  _ “Do I get something in return?” _

_ “Whatever you pay for the drinks, I’ll double it,”  _ Haru said. 

_ “Well, that’s overkill,” _ Anna said, laughing.  _ “I was just hoping you had some cute guys with you or something.” _

“Haru, Ren is not allowed anywhere near her,” Keiko said, shifting back to Japanese.

Anna looked at her, confused. 

_ “Sorry, we have a friend who women tend to throw themselves at,” _ Keiko suppressed mentioning that one of those women was her own mother.  _ “I was warning her that we’d need to watch you around him.” _

_ “Oh.”  _ Anna looked between them.  _ “You’re being serious.” _

_ “Mostly,” _ Keiko said.  _ “He’s supposed to be in love, so who knows?” _

They all traded chat ID’s. Keiko spent the rest of the morning getting the silent treatment and dirty looks from Makoto, who was angry with her for turning a vacation into work.

===

_ Afternoon _

“Keiko, you’re going to be pretty disappointed-” Ann rolled her eyes as Keiko excitedly led a group of Ann, Makoto and Shiho towards something called Chipotle, which she only recognized from memes online. “It’s-”

“There’s no way something as fun to say as  _ burrito _ could be disappointing,” Keiko said, although she knew the logic didn’t add up.

“She’s got a point,” Shiho said. “It’s like saying ‘I ate alligator,’ or ‘I ate a shoe.’ You’ll at least get weird looks.”

“Then why don’t you two go by yourself-” Ann cut Makoto off.

“We cannot leave them unattended,” Ann huffed. 

“You’re right,” Makoto sighed. “I already had to stop Keiko from filing a ton of document requests.”

Keiko protested. “They’re legally required to supply documents that don’t contain classified information! That’s like, my dream!”

“Your dreams are really sad,” Shiho said. “Nerd.”

“Ann, Shiho is bullying me,” Keiko whined.

Chipotle was as disappointing as Ann said.

“There’s better Mexican restaurants on the mainland. Chipotle is more along the lines of Big Bang Burger.” Ann finished explaining what she was trying to explain before they went to eat. “It’s fast and fairly cheap, but for what you’re paying you could find a sit-down place that’s better.”

They all trudged along, overly full because the large portion sizes would take getting used to.

“You ever wonder if things are so expensive because they give you too much?” Keiko felt like she’d consumed lead. 

“I have this argument with my dad a lot, it’s-”

_ “You can’t fire me! I quit!” _

“Ha, that’s the second person I’ve seen get in a shouting match with that manager today.” Keiko couldn’t hold her chuckle. She gave Makoto the side-eye. “If only the Phantom Thieves were around to do something-”

“We don’t go after a target unless everybody agrees,” Makoto said. “And I don’t appreciate you finding work for  _ yourself _ while we’re here, let alone work for me.”

“Ren said he’s in,” Shiho chirped happily from behind Ann, holding up her phone.

Makoto grumbled something to herself about Shiho. “How suspicious would it look if we left Tokyo and changed a heart here? We have to send the calling card publicly.”

Keiko made a fart noise with her mouth. “Buzzkill.”

“Are you that eager to get rid of me?” Makoto raised an eyebrow.

“No, I just wanted to-”

“Zip it,” Makoto said, then looked at Ann and Shiho. “We can agree I’m in charge on this trip, right?”

“I’m not gonna dispute that,” Shiho said with a shrug. They’d reached the hotel lobby. Ann agreed.

“Then I’m demanding that  _ you,” _ she said, sticking her finger into Keiko’s sternum, “fucking relax.”

“Holy shit, Makoto swears?”

Makoto rolled her eyes, and turned her attention back towards Keiko. “If I can turn it off, you can. Okay?” Makoto didn’t wait for a reply. “Good. I’m glad you agree.”

Keiko didn’t dare open her mouth again as they entered the hotel lobby. They weren’t staying in some kind of upscale hotel, and the lobby reminded Keiko of her own apartment building in a way. She imagined this place wasn’t normally so filled with students.

‘Actually, these aren’t Shujin uniforms,’ she notices. ‘What’s with all the blue?’ Then Keiko feels a tap on her shoulder. She turned face-to-face with someone she didn’t recognize, a girl a little taller than herself with long black hair and magazine-pretty in the same way Ann was. This wasn’t to say they looked alike, but they both looked like they’d belong on a magazine cover or an advertisement for a clothing brand. 

“Excuse me,” she said. “You’re Miyahara-san, right?”

“Uh, I am,” Keiko looked from Makoto to Ann. “Sorry, I really didn’t expect to get recognized this far from home.” Keiko had to think, because she knew this girl from somewhere. Something about the red charm she wore in her hair seemed- “Togo-san!”

“Oh! You do recognize me,” Togo beamed. “Kitagawa-kun had to point you out to me-”

“Wait, Yusuke’s here, too?” Keiko blinked. “Why is Yusuke here?”

Togo looked nervous. “Something about riots in Los Angeles. I don’t really understand,” she shrugged. “Kosei administration didn’t feel it was safe, so they made a last minute change.”

Keiko sighed. “That’s a bit terrifying.”

“It is,” Togo nodded. “I was wondering, though. Ohya-san suggested you might be able to help with a problem I’m having.”

“Oh, wait,” Keiko said, poking Makoto in the ribs. She was listening to Yusuke recall the beauty of the clouds on his flight in. “Makoto, am I allowed to talk to somebody who needs my help, or do I have to shoe her away? I just want to make sure I’m  _ taking my vacation seriously.” _

Hifumi giggled at the bite of the last few words.

Makoto sighed and took her seriously. “I appreciate you asking for permission. You’re allowed to talk, but if this winds up with 800 words on Monday’s paper, I’m going to strangle you.”

“Oh! It’s not that kind of help,” Togo said. “I apologize for the misunderstanding.”

“Then please,” Makoto begged.  _ “Please, _ just get her to talk about something normal and not stressful, for once.”

“Why, I’ve never been so insulted in my entire life.”

Hifumi’s eyes shifted between the two. “I honestly can’t tell if you’re bantering and that really bothers me.”

“If it makes you feel any better, I still don’t have a single clue what you want, so we’re on equal footing,” Keiko said. 

“Right,” Togo said. “Could we talk privately?”

“Of course,” Keiko said. They walked silently to Keiko’s room, which had been newly cleaned. She briefly thought about how terrifying that would be if it were her apartment that got cleaned. ‘There’s so much incriminating shit around there that I’d probably be public enemy number one. Or a hero. It really just depends on who found it.’ All Keiko was missing was J. Jonah Jameson asking for pictures of the Phantom Thieves. ‘I could probably get pictures of one of them…’ ‘Bad. No dirty thoughts. Focus.’

Hifumi chose to sit in the lounge chair across from the sofa where Keiko planted her butt. 

“So, if Ohya sent you my way, I’m guessing this isn’t all too related to work?You’re her beat and she’s not one to give away a story.”

“It’s kind of work related,” Hifumi gave a pensive look. “How do you hide such a big part of you from the world?”

“I’m going to need you to be more specific, Togo-”

“Just Hifumi is fine,” she interrupted. “I mean, with you and Niijima-san.”

“I’m surprised Ohya would tell you about that,” Keiko raised an eyebrow.

“I confided in her-”   
“Never confide anything in Ohya,” Keiko chuckled. “That was your first mistake. It’s okay, though. I’m learning that lesson as we speak.”

“I asked her how things usually go for idols who come out.” Hifumi folded her hands in her lap and looked down. ‘She’s definitely been raised as an idol.’ She sat with her back straight, her eyes up, legs together. Hifumi was the most proper person Keiko had ever met.

“Coming out of what?” Keiko cut off her own question. “Oh! That. Right.”

“I know you haven’t publicly, but I thought you might have some pointers on handling it.” Hifumi didn’t let Keiko reply before she started to stand up. “I’m sorry. This is so stupid-”

“Sit,” Keiko said, reaching over and tapping her hand. “I might be the wrong person to ask about this but I appreciate you reaching out anyway. You sure it was Ohya that put you up to this?”

“I was with her and Ren when they mentioned you,” Hifumi said. “They weren’t painting it as something scandalous, I swear.”

Keiko shrugged. “It’s really not a scandal. Honestly? This is a better question for Makoto. I might be in the public eye, both my parents are bi, apparently. I’ve never had to deal with being accepted, so I’ve just never brought it up.”

“Oh.” Hifumi frowned. “That’s lucky.”

“If somebody asked me, I’d tell them, but it’s also probably important that I keep things with Makoto in the shadows because I’ve got people coming after me,” Keiko joined her in frowning.

“Do you really?”

Keiko nodded. “It’s kind of like being a superhero. I have to keep my private life as private as possible.”

“I didn’t realize you were in danger like that,” Hifumi said. “How do you handle it?”

“I’m lucky.” Keiko sighed dreamily. “I’ve got some very overprotective friends.”

“You mean the Phantom Thieves?”

“What? I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Keiko said, speaking a little too quickly.

“Ren’s not as covert as he thinks,” Hifumi chuckled. “He doesn’t know I found out.”

“Oh. You should probably tell him you know,” Keiko said. “Keeping things a secret is a huge burden on him.”

“I like to think I’m famous for a reason. Perception is key in shogi,” Hifumi said, tapping her temple with her index finger. Her smile disappeared. “That sounded so conceited.”

Keiko couldn’t help but smile. “I learned quickly that if I’m going to survive in Tokyo, I’m going to have to show some pride.”

“Right,” Hifumi said. “The best idols have a chip on their shoulder.”

“That’s the truth,” Keiko said. “Look at Rise. None of her music is typical of an idol. Or even Ann, who’s staying next door. She’s got a lot to fight through just because she looks a little different. Something has to drive you.”

“What drives you?”

“Well, Futaba told me uncomfortable amounts of spite and repressed horniness,” Keiko laughed when Hifumi’s cheeks turned bright red. “I think the truth lies somewhere in the middle of that. I just like telling stories. Always have, especially the ones that might be uncomfortable to hear.”

“Like the murders and rapes?” Hifumi’s eyes lightened a little. “Oh, and then there’s the campaign finance violations.”

Keiko smiled, impressed. “You really do follow my work.”

“My mother doesn’t like you very much,” Hifumi said, momentarily confusing Keiko. “I tend to enjoy things that make my mother miserable.”

“Is that why you play shogi?”

Hifumi nodded. “My father taught me how before he passed. Mother always wanted the perfect little girl. When the magazines started calling, I was finally good enough in her eyes.” Keiko watched as her eyes narrowed. “I still love shogi, but I always wonder what would happen if I refused a photoshoot. I support us, so I really can’t afford to take a stand.”

“Well, if you ever decide to take a stand, I’ve got an extra room and I can get you a bed.”

“I couldn’t do that,” Hifumi said, sounding unsure of herself. “Mother wouldn’t have anywhere to go.”

“As somebody who has recently split from their parents, your mom will survive.” ‘Aya can figure it out,’ she thought to herself. “My mom did.”

Keiko’s phone buzzing broke their conversation, a few text messages from their group chat. “Have I helped you at all?”

“Well, on the whole ‘coming out’ thing, no,” Hifumi said, sounding honest but not upset. “But you’ve reminded me that I don’t have much driving me, and I think the two may be connected.”

“Glad I could be of service.”

**RiseFan2201:** Keiko

**Pannther:** why don’t you knock on her door?

**RiseFan2201:** she’s recruiting more lesbians

**QueenMako:** that’s horribly rude

**RiseFan2201:** I can literally hear their conversation

**QueenMako:** eavesdropping is rude

**Alibaba:** honestly, Shiho, what are we going to do with you?   
**Joker:** Futaba

**Alibaba:** yes?

**Joker:** never change.

**Alibaba:** Don’t plan to. Who wants to see Joker naked?

**RiseFan2201:** Already seen it

**Pannther:** You have not!

**RiseFan2201:** I discovered your password

**Pannther:** I don’t have any of those kinds of photos of Ren

**RiseFan2201:** Then whose penis was that

**RiseFan2201:** genuinely curious

**Pannther:** your mom’s

**SendNews:** can we please not joke about this

**Pannther:** HA

**Harufying:** do people actually send naked photos of each other?

**QueenMako:** smart people don’t

**Harufying:** makes sense.

**RiseFan2201:** I’m very concerned that Ann has photos of a penis on her phone and didn’t tell me who it belonged to

**Pannther:** and I’m concerned that you’re saying this in a group chat when you’re literally sitting right next to me

**RiseFan2201:** Keiko can back me up. The public must be informed

**Pannther:** for the record, that photo of a penis wasn’t a penis. Somebody photoshopped Kobayakawa in a way that made him look like a weirdly shaped dick

**SendNews:** he is a weirdly shaped dick so that makes sense

**Skullkid:** who just imagined Kobayakawa’s penis?

**Joker:** Kobayakawa is best girl

**QueenMako:** I’ll be sure to tell Kasumi

**Joker:** plz queen no

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I included dialogue that said "you gave me diabetes" because my beta keeps telling me my Keiko/Makoto scenes are going to give him diabetes. I'm incapable of writing non-cheesy romance. It's part of my charm. 
> 
> Hawaii! That's kind of cool, right? Look at me, introducing an OC that's only supposed to be around for two chapters and then going back and including her in later stuff to fill some holes I hadn't thought about yet. 
> 
> True story, the original version of this chapter had a scene where Keiko filed a ton of FOIA requests and I had to take it out because I am the only person who would have found that funny.


	22. Hawaii (Part Two)

_ Thursday, September 8, Evening _

Keiko and Shiho were the only two not surprised that none of their classmates wanted to party with them.

Shiho’s bedside manner could use some work, Keiko thought. “Did you really think everyone would jump at the opportunity to hang out with the delinquent transfer, three of Kamoshida’s victims, the short-tempered class president, and her pupil, who doubles as the nosiest human in existence?”

“I’m not her pupil!” Keiko shouted at the same time as Makoto, who squawked about her not having a short temper.

“Why didn’t Haru get a criticism?”

Shiho folded her arms over her chest and shuddered. “She scares me.”

“Isn’t that your criticism?” Makoto raised an eyebrow.

“Perhaps.” Shiho shrugged. “Where is Haru, anyway?”

“This isn’t going to help your perception of her,” Keiko chuckled. “She’s going over the contract that binds her to Sugimura in search of a loophole-”

“Found one!” Haru shouted from Keiko and Makoto’s room. She’d drawn the short straw of rooming with Kawakami. 

They also chose to leave their door open while Kawakami helped her parse the copy of the contract she had on her phone. Apparently, she was about as okay with arranged marriages as the rest of Haru’s friends. 

Keiko almost felt guilty for the incoming shitfaced teenagers she was going to have to deal with, but then she remembered Becky, and her mom, and everything about her life that was so beyond fucked.

Kawakami entered Ann and Shiho’s room flustered. “I didn’t think an arranged marriage would be so complicated.”

“How many cows did he sell Haru for, anyway? Ouch!” Ann slapped the back of Shiho’s head. 

“Behave.” Ann snapped.

“Miss Kawakami, she’s abusing me!” Shiho whined, scooting her way down the bed and closer to the teacher. 

Kawakami looked around the room nonchalantly. “I didn’t see anything,” 

“A Shujin teacher looking the other way? Color me shocked,” Shiho grumbled.

An awkward silence permeated the room.

“Too much?” Shiho shifted her eyes from person to person, then nodded. “Too much.”

Kawakami sighed and stood up. “I need a drink. If something bad happens, Makoto’s in charge.” She left, probably heading downstairs to the bar, Keiko assumed. 

Haru entered the room to the awkward silence, made a face, and ultimately ignored it. 

Keiko stammered through the silence. “What’d you find?”

“It’s pretty airtight,” Haru frowned. “And the ramifications, if I break them, are pretty severe.” 

“How severe?” Keiko questioned. 

“My father put up control of Okumura foods as collateral.”

“What are the terms? That sounds like a problem for him, not you.”

“Well, my signature is on the contract, too. A loophole is probably my only way out.”

Haru startled when another person came into the room, but it was only Makoto. “You could claim refugee status. Arranged marriages are illegal in the United States.” 

“But then I’d be stuck in America,” Haru frowned. “I don’t want to flee Japan when I finally have friends.”

‘Okay, she’s literally willing to go back when she found a way out just for us?’ Keiko felt guilty for ever questioning Haru’s motives. 

“The marriage can be called off if Sugimura’s father calls it off. The examples listed included if he felt the marriage would tarnish his brand.”

“We’ve already taken the steps to do that-” Keiko’s eyes shifted towards Makoto, who entered the room with a bucket of ice. They’d have to check on Kawakami pretty soon to make sure she wouldn’t interfere with their night. 

The interview Keiko did with Angry Ann (who was ironically named Anna) would help build a case that Okumura Foods is a terrible employer. 

“I’m afraid that won’t be enough. My next idea, though, is to tarnish my own brand.”

“By doing what?”

“I could make a porno-”

“You’re not making a porno,” Makoto said. She’d taken a seat next to Keiko on the bed opposite Shiho. 

“I mean, I’ll take one for the-”

“Shiho, you’re not making a porno either,” Ann grumbled. 

“I’m just saying, I’d be-”

“Shiho.” Ann’s voice bit and Shiho wilted under her glare.

“I’ll stop.”

“Anyway, Haru, we aren’t letting you make a porno.”

“Okay.” She chewed her inner lip and made an odd face. “What if I went off the rails? I can pick fights and-” then Haru grinned. “I could start taking credit for the Phantom Thieves incidents.”

Her idea was met with silence and awkward glances from everyone in the room. ‘Is Haru the only one here who doesn’t know?’

Shiho definitely knows. Ann and Makoto know.

“That’s painting quite the target on your back, Haru,” Keiko said, breaking the silence. “Like, I’m close enough to the incidents as it is and I regularly get attempts on my life.”

“Then I guess the only way is to go after my father’s brand,” Haru said in a melancholic tone. “But that puts my friends in danger.”

Keiko chuckled lightly. “Like I’m not already in danger. I’ve already been followed home by the police, had people attempt to sling mud, and been accused of being a Phantom Thief. Somebody’s already trying to kill me.”

Makoto and Ann seemed unphased, but the non-Phantom Thieves in the room looked at Keiko like she grew a second head. 

Keiko sighed. “We’re getting awfully close to talking about work stuff and Makoto threatened me to get me to relax.”

“I did not threaten you.” Keiko had to hide a grin because Makoto got awfully defensive. 

A buzzing of her phone stopped Keiko from arguing further. “That might be Anna.”

**ALMArt:** in the lobby

**SendNews:** be down in a minute

**SendNews:** you an artist?

**ALMArt:** I am

**SendNews:** one of our friends was a student of Madarame

**ALMArt:** poor guy

**ALMArt:** your friend. Not Madarame. Fuck that guy

**SendNews:** k heading down now

The Angry Ann nickname was more apt than Keiko intended it to be when she first coined it, although she had straight blonde hair, and a red tank top and hoodie tied around the waist wasn’t exactly an unusual outfit. ‘She’s also the only other blonde white woman I’ve ever met besides Ann.’ Anna had a couple backpacks, which Keiko assumed were full of contraband.

_ “How’s it going?” _

_ “Oh, ya know,”  _ Anna gestured.  _ “Just helping tourists for more money than I would have made in one paycheck at the job I just quit.” _

_ “Haru’s good for that,” _ Keiko mumbled. 

_ “She seemed pretty down to earth for a trust fund kid,”  _ Anna said.  _ “That could be the bribery talkin’, though.” _

Keiko chuckled.  _ “She’s overly aware of everything.” _

_ “She seems like she might be a spy or something,” _ Anna laughed.  _ “Getting secret superhero vibes from her.” _

_ “She’s Japan’s Tony Stark.” _

Keiko and Makoto’s room had the adjoining door with Ann and Shiho, so the two rooms were the home to their debauchery. Two fridges and two bathrooms would be necessary, and they were somehow able to create a larger sitting area by moving the couch from one room into the other.

‘That’s going to be a bitch to get back in the right room tomorrow morning,’ Keiko thought. ‘Especially if we’re all hungover.’

_ “Set everything wherever,” _ Keiko gestured toward the bed.  _ “I need to get everything in the fridge.” _

Anna did just that, setting two gym bags full of god-knows-what on the bed that Makoto and Keiko weren’t using before sitting on the couch. Keiko started pulling things out of the bag: A case of beer with a red, white, and blue label she didn’t recognize. “Pabst,” she read out loud. “Never heard of it.”

_ “It’s shitty cheap beer,” _ Anna said.  _ “I figured you ain’t drinkin’ it for the taste, anyway.” _

_ “Good assumption,”  _ Keiko said before pulling another case of it out of that bag.

_ “The rest is in the other bag,” _ Anna said.  _ “I wrapped them in towels so they wouldn’t clank. I recommend you guys try and limit noise in general. Cops here don’t hesitate to throw the book at tourists.” _

_ “Sounds just like Tokyo,”  _ Keiko said. Shinjuku was nothing if not a trap for tourists to make mistakes and lose large amounts of money.

_ “It’s every city,” _ Anna said, and she sounded like she was going to say more when the bathroom door opened and Makoto entered the room. Keiko blushed when Anna let out a whistle, knowing she’d been caught.  _ “You two need me to go meet the other girls and give you some alone time?” _

Makoto blushed, having understood well enough what the newcomer was saying.

Keiko cleared her throat, quickly apologized and shrugged.  _ “Is it that obvious?” _ She was past the point of playing coy because she was definitely checking Makoto out while she was shoving beer into the fridge. She couldn’t even hide it because the can she was holding fell straight to the floor. “I’ll just put that one for later,” Keiko mumbled to herself. 

_ “You have no concept of subtlety, Keiko,” _ Makoto chided. She hadn’t even particularly dressed up, but Keiko always noted when Makoto wore something outside of the norm. She was wearing a sleeveless t-shirt and-

“Are those my pants?” Keiko raised an eyebrow, then nodded towards Anna.  _ “Sorry. I asked if those were my pants.” _

_ “No big deal. I’ll just pretend I’m watching JoJo or something-”  _ Anna paused.  _ “Actually, judging from your girlfriend’s arms, I might be watching JoJo.” _

Makoto blushed at what she assumed was a compliment.  _ “Nice to meet you, I’m Keiko’s girlfriend, Makoto.” _

_ “Likewise. I’m Anna.” _

_ “We’re really lucky that’s your name,”  _ Keiko chuckled.  _ “You’re going to spend the whole night getting called Ann.” _

_ “Keiko, that’s impolite,” _ Makoto frowned.  _ “She really does look like Ann, though.” _

_ “Who’s Ann?” _ Anna raised an eyebrow. 

_ “One of our friends,”  _ Makoto said. She let Keiko fill the fridge with beer. Makoto opened the second back and marveled at the alcohol.  _ “How much did you spend?” _

_ “Haru asked me to keep it under $200,” _ Anna said while wearing a smug grin.  _ “It came in at $199.87.” _

Makoto pulled out her phone and typed the number into a search engine.  _ “Fuck. That’s like 20,000 yen.” _

_ “That’s literally a fifth of my rent,”  _ Keiko’s face went white. 

_ “Where the fuck are you finding rent for $1,000 in Tokyo?” _ Anna sounded exasperated.  _ “Everywhere I looked was like, triple that.” _

“Wait, do you speak Japanese?”

“My grandparents would disown me,” Anna chuckled. “My mom’s Japanese. My dad’s a marine. We lived in Okinawa until I was 15.”

“Well, fuck me, then,” Keiko said. 

“I just appreciate you not saying rude shit in Japanese thinking I won’t understand,” Anna said, rolling her eyes. “I get enough of that from my aunts thinking I’m an airhead.”

“That sounds shit-”

Shiho barged into the room after hearing Makoto accidentally clank the bottles against each other. “We get the boo-” She looked at the woman on the couch. “You’re not Ann.”

“I mean, technically I am.”

“But you’re like, old,” Shiho said. “And no pigtails?”

“Shiho, you need to knock first,” Ann said, entering the room behind her, nudging her forward with an arm. “And you  _ need to stop _ criticizing people when you meet them.”

“She’s your doppelganger!” Shiho whined at the admonishing. “Doppelg-Ann-ger?”

Ann gave her a quizzical look, then an analyzing gaze to the girl on the couch. “I mean, kind of?”

“No,” Keiko said. “Seriously, Haru and I both thought she was you at first.”

“I see the resemblance,” Anna said, then continued in a sarcastic tone. “I bet you have a great time living in Japan. You have anyone offer to buy your panties yet?”

Ann glared at Shiho. “Yeah. My best friend.”

“She certainly makes a great first impression, I can tell you that,” Anna sighed. 

Shiho frowned. “I was just trying to be funny-”

“She’s busting your balls,” Keiko chuckled. “Amazing that all it takes to get you under control is blonde hair. Maybe you should see what Ryuji’s up to-”

“I don’t think bleach counts,” Ann said through her laughter. 

“Besides, Ryuji’s not a  _ pretty  _ blonde,” Keiko grinned. “We could make Ryuji pretty-”

“We’re so lucky he can’t hear us right now,” Makoto rolled her eyes. “He’d be shouting and drawing all kinds of attention.” She was working on getting liquor and soda into the fridge.

“Oh!” Keiko said. “I should tell them to start heading over.”

“‘Start heading over,’” Shiho mocked. “They’re like, five doors down.”

**SendNews:** head over

**Joker:** it ok if Hifumi and Yusuke come?

**SendNews:** yes

**Pannther:** Yusuke cannot ask anyone to pose nude for him

**Joker:** that might be a dealbreaker

**Skullkid:** I still think this is a terrible idea

**SendNews:** text when you’re here, and try and be subtle

**RiseFan2201:** Ryuji

**Skullkid:** what

**RiseFan2201:** try and be subtle

**Skullkid:** I’m not an idiot

**RiseFan2201:** had me fooled

**Pannther:** Children, be nice

**SendNews:** see that, @QueenMako, Ann’s trying to steal your thunder

Keiko could feel Makoto’s rolling eyes bore a hole in the back of her head. 

“Was that really necessary?” 

“Meh,” Ann shrugged. “Shiho’s exactly what you get when you let your daughter get raised by somebody her own age.”

Shiho looked offended but Keiko always struggled to tell when she was being serious. “You didn’t raise me!”

Ann chuckled. “Who had to give you the birds and the bees? You literally have a bedroom at my house.”

“Hey, I never would have taken you up on that-” Judging from Shiho’s voice cracking, Keiko assumed she was legitimately upset.

“Shiho,” Ann spoke calmly. “I’m teasing you. I promise, nobody’s happier that you’re here with us than I am.”

Shiho had been leaning against the wall while Ann watched Makoto fill the fridge, but she went over and sat on the couch opposite Anna after the tense conversation. She had her hands folded in her lap. “I fucking hate this.” 

“You’re good, Shiho,” Keiko said. She’d finished filling their fridge with beer and made her way over to the couch. Makoto followed. “Nobody is judging you.”

“I’m tired of feeling like I’m made of glass,” Shiho spat. “I want to give people shit and be able to take shit from them like I used to.”

Keiko nodded. “None of us expect you to just be okay.”

“Am I missing something?” Anna had just been sitting there awkwardly while Shiho had her minor spiral. 

“Oh,” Shiho mumbled. “To the shock of nobody, I’ve got a lot of issues I haven’t properly worked through.”

“Uh, Shiho, they aren’t the kind of problems you can expect to just work through-”

“I’m  _ going _ to do it, damn it,” Shiho snapped, interrupting Keiko. “Now, I’m going to stop being a stick in the mud, so if y’all could do me a favor and just forget about my stupid fragility and have fun, I’d really appreciate it.”

“I think I’m just going to avoid asking-”

“I got sexually assaulted by a teacher and my friends got him sent to jail for it against all odds.” Shiho huffed the words like she was reminding herself of her unique situation. “It was some real Scooby-Doo shit and I need to focus on how fucking cool that is.”

Anna looked around the room with a slight frown. “I was hesitant to hang out with a bunch of kids but ya’s are more mature than I am. I assumed I’d be laughing at poop jokes all night.”

“Oh no,” Ann mumbled. “Please don’t get Shiho started-”

“Anyone find it weird that you pee when you poop but not the other way around?”

“You got Shiho started,” Ann’s face went white. “Thanks.”

If Anna was just pretending to humor Shiho’s barrage of bathroom humor, she was doing an admirable acting job. Keiko had an inkling that she wasn’t acting. 

Eventually, the barrage was broken up by a knock at the door, which Makoto answered. She was looking for a reprieve from Shiho’s stand-up act. 

“Jesus, Queen, gonna go threaten Shimizu again?” Ryuji chuckled lightly at his own joke but stopped when Makoto punched him in the arm. “Ow! It was a joke.”

“I didn’t even punch you that hard,” Makoto rolled her eyes, stepping out of his way to let him in. Ren and Hifumi followed a few steps behind him.

“Yusuke’s on his way,” Ren said. “He’s painting the sunset.” He kept a straight face through the chuckles. “I’m being serious.”

He was met with an awkward silence.

“Why does that surprise any of you?”

“I think they’re staring at me,” Hifumi had a small smile. She greeted Keiko first. “Hi, Keiko-chan.”

“Hi, Hifumi,” Keiko nodded in her direction. “Take a seat wherever. Get a drink.” Keiko shrugged. “Do whatever the fuck you want, honestly. I’m not your babysitter.”

“Where’s Haru?”

“Here!” Haru stumbled through the door, tripping over her own feet. “Oh, fiddlesticks.”

“Keiko says that, too,” Makoto chuckled. The group was merciful in limiting their laughs at Haru’s misfortune. 

“That’s embarrassing,” Haru frowned as Ryuji helped pick her back up. 

“Don’t worry,” Anna said. “If we’re lucky, we’re all falling like that by the end of the night.”

They went around the room introducing Anna and Hifumi to the rest of the group while Yusuke took his time showing up. He eventually made it after the first rounds had already gone through. Keiko discovered she wasn’t all that fond of drinking heavily in large groups almost immediately. Everything was too loud: The music, the voices, the clank of the bottles. She tried something clear Anna called  _ tequila _ and choked it down. It’s moldy-tasting bitterness reminded Keiko of the time her mother decided she could make fried chicken at home and got everyone sick. The only part of the tequila she enjoyed was watching Makoto lick the salt-covered shot glass rim, a motion so lewd that it would invade Keiko’s thoughts for the rest of the night, if not the rest of her life. She decided to stick to whatever that shitty beer was because while it didn’t taste great, it wasn’t terrible and she felt she could drink it without getting off her ass. 

‘It’s probably best I stay partially sober,’ Keiko thought as she watched Ren choke down a single ill-advised shot of whiskey given to him by Makoto. A single shot of whiskey was all it took to get Ren acting like Ohya after a night at Crossroads. ‘At least he’s still tight lipped,’ Keiko mused. She couldn’t help but grin. 

Makoto was shockingly in her element. She shared another shot of tequila with Anna and Ann, who had a mutual love of the stuff, while losing none of her typical sure-footedness. She definitely seemed less stern.

“You having a good time, babe?” Makoto had stepped over to where Keiko was sitting on one of the easy chairs, leaning an arm down so their eyes could meet more easily.

Keiko grinned. “Time of my life. I’m just people watching.”

“These are your friends,” Makoto said. “Spend too much time watching and you might miss something.”

“Did you get that off a fortune cookie or something?” Keiko made a show of standing up in hopes nobody tried to make her drink more than just the beer. If she played it off like she was drunk, nobody would bother her. 

Makoto shrugged, then pulled Keiko in for a kiss. “Nope. I just think you should be a participant in your own life.”

Keiko laughed. “Insert booze, receive fortune. Got it.”

Makoto frowned and started to walk away before Keiko grabbed her hand and pulled her in, sharing another kiss. The warmth from the kiss made the taste of tequila far more pleasant.

“Jaw off the floor, Ryuji-kun,” Haru giggled. “That goes for you, too, Hifumi-chan.”

Ryuji facepalmed. “Busted.”

Hifumi’s face was bright red. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to-”

“You’re good,” Keiko waved her off. “We’re being a bit too public.”

“Oh, please,” Makoto rolled her eyes. “The  _ one _ time my girlfriend will kiss me in front of other people and she’s apologizing.”

Keiko slipped an arm around Makoto and squeezed her butt, causing her girlfriend to jump while making a squeaking noise.

Ryuji and Hifumi shared a look and potentially a wordless conversation. 

Keiko and Makoto then spent the next while ordering food because Anna swore up and down that drinking on an empty stomach was the worst party sin, and it would be best to eat before everyone was sloppy, shitty drunk.

They ordered and ate their pizza, and Keiko would like to believe they had real, thought-provoking conversation through it all. In reality, though, it was mostly Ren slurring his speech because he discovered early on he can’t handle liquor, Makoto brazenly flirting with Keiko in a way that was awkward for everyone else, and Haru and Shiho taking turns making Ryuji uncomfortable while he pretended to drink the beer in his hand. Keiko eventually came to the conclusion that she needed something to focus on, lest she die of embarrassment. Makoto was getting  _ awfully _ handsy and Keiko was too bashful to call her out.

“We should play a drinking game!” Makoto said loudly enough that it probably could have been heard from outside their room. Keiko sighed. If Kawakami was going to bust them, she’d have done so already. Between Ren stumbling everywhere, Makoto losing control of the volume of her voice, and Haru’s in-and-out journeys to make sure Kawakami wasn’t suspicious, Keiko assumed their cover had been blown. 

“Let’s do it,” Keiko said, knowing that it would lead to her drinking more than she wanted.

Everyone made themselves a new drink while Makoto took charge of the group like a true second in command. “I only really know one drinking game,” she said, and Keiko had to suppress a grin. “Anyone play Never Have I Ever?”

“I have,” Anna said.

Ann and Shiho glanced at each other. “We’re familiar with it.”

“Alright, that’s more than enough to get started then.” Keiko took the lead. “I’ll explain the rules because if we wait for Makoto’s drunk ass to remember them none of us will be drunk anymore.”

“Hey! That’s mean-”

“Mako, let me talk,” Keiko jokingly patted Makoto on the head. They were all sitting in a circle on the couches. “Basically, a person says something they’ve never done, and if you’ve done it, you drink.” Keiko noted the nods, and continued. “For example, never have I ever kissed a boy.” 

Anna, Hifumi, Ann, and Ren all took drinks.

“Ren?” Keiko chuckled. “Who?”

Ren sighed. “He kissed me, not the other way around. I might’ve punched him in the face.”

“What?” Makoto’s voice almost sounded sober. “Who?”

“Akechi,” Ren rolled his eyes. “It was unpleasant.”

“My turn!” Makoto’s voice no longer sounded sober. “Never have I ever been on a date with Goro Akechi.”

“You bitch!” Keiko shouted although she couldn’t hold her laughter after. “I _saved_ _your life_ by agreeing to that date.”

Anna blinked hard. “Wait, Goro Akechi, like the Detective Prince?”

Ren groaned. “Let’s leave that title to Naoto Shirogane. Akechi’s a pain in the-”

“Wait, are you  _ that _ Keiko Miyahara?” Anna’s eyes grew wide. “My grandparents fuckin’ hate you, dude.”

Keiko shrugged and sipped her beer. “I have drawn the ire of many adults in Japan, potentially including your former boss.”

“What, Troy? He’s a good guy, just-” She stopped for a second. “Right, Okumura. That got anything to do with why you’re hanging around with his daughter?”

“Uh, no,” Haru said. She’d been sipping slowly on vodka mixed with clear soda for a while. “We were friends before that.”

It was Ryuji’s turn next. He looked around the room, shrugged, and said “never have I ever been on the cover of a magazine or newspaper.”

“Oof,” Keiko said. “You guys are going to get me killed. Do I have to drink for every time?”

Ren, Yusuke, Haru, Ann and Hifumi all had to drink.

“I get why Ren was on the front page,” Keiko said, thinking back to the intro story and the story about Kamoshida threatening him. “And Hifumi makes sense.”

“Father, mother and I were on the cover of a magazine back when he still loved us,” Haru said in a matter-of-fact tone. She ignored the pitying glances.

“Sensei and I once shared a cover after he called me an ‘artist with a bright future’-”

“Madarame, right?” Anna raised an eyebrow, and Yusuke nodded. “Sorry, dude. That shit’s rough.”

“It is fine,” Yusuke said. “I have transcended the need for his tutelage and-”

“Never have I ever gone on a long tangent about the glory of art,” Shiho laughed hard at her own joke. “Drink, Yusuke.”

“You didn’t need to be so rude about it,” he said, taking a drink of something brown that Keiko decided to stay away from. 

Anna took a drink of her vodka soda. “A few more of these and I’ll be joining Yusuke in his ranting.”

“I look forward to it,” Yusuke said, smiling as widely as he ever does.

Then it was Ann’s turn. “Never have I ever…” she trailed off. “This is harder than I thought.” She paused to think even further.

“Get on with it, Blondie,” Shiho razzed.

“Fuck you, Shiho,” Ann said. “Never have I ever kissed a girl- Shiho why the fuck are you drinking?”

“I kiss you on the forehead sometimes, so unless you’re having some gender identity issues you need to can it,” Shiho said. “Always kiss the homies goodnight.”

Ren took a drink. “I can get with that,” he chuckled, leaning across the table and planting a kiss on Ryuji’s forehead. He pushed Ren away, although his laughter showed that he found it funny. It wasn’t lost on Keiko that this kind of thing could be triggering for Shiho. Shiho was handling it well, though, laughing and carrying on to a point where Keiko felt guilty for even expecting there to be something wrong.

Yusuke’s turn came around, and Keiko thought he wouldn’t be Yusuke if he didn’t take too damn long coming up with something he’s never done.

She timed him at six minutes, which might not seem that long, but felt like forever to everyone else. 

“Can we just skip-” Yusuke interrupted Ann.

“No, it’s my turn, and I shall take my turn,” Yusuke said. “Never have I ever been so rudely interrupted.”

Everyone laughed and took a drink.

He looked around, dumbfounded. “What was so funny?”

“That was your turn, bud,” Ren said. “Haru, it’s your turn.”

Keiko noticed Haru’s face turn stone serious, and the rest of the room fell eerily silent.

“Never have I ever been a Phantom Thief.”

Ryuji dropped his beer, spilling it all over the floor. Keiko couldn’t help but notice that the liquid spilled out was clear and didn’t foam when it hit the carpet. ‘Is Ryuji drinking water?’

“Not funny?” Haru gave a confused look. “I thought it was funny.”

“Uh,” Keiko looked around the room. ‘Thank god I’m mostly sober.’ “Makoto was adamant that I avoid thinking about work things tonight.”

“Oh! Mako-chan, I’m so sorry,” Haru said. “Don’t blame Keiko!”

“I’m not, Haru,” Makoto said, her tone sounding a bit off. She doesn’t have Keiko’s acting talents. Keiko made sure to shoot a glare at Ann that told her to stay quiet. “It’s okay.”

“Phantom Thieves are a hot topic with our group,” Keiko said, directing it towards Anna. “The rumor is that they originate from our school.”

“No shit,” Anna said. “That’s fucking sick.”

“Is it?” Ren raised an eyebrow. “Most people view them as a nuisance.”

“Nah, fam,” Anna chuckled.  _ “Lame _ people think they’re a nuisance. It annoys the shit outta me that people get evidence of real-life superheroes and start searching for everything they ever did wrong. Like, of  _ course _ there’s collateral. Powerful people don’t come down without taking other shit down with them.”

Keiko sighed. “You’re preaching to the choir.”

They were able to stay on strictly non-Phantom Thieves topics for the rest of the game, which left the whole party thoroughly knackered except Ryuji, who was doing a surprisingly good job holding his liquor.

===

_ Late Evening _

Anna stupidly asked about Kamoshida. ‘Why the fuck did she ask about Kamoshida?’ 

‘What in the absolute fuck was she thinking? Is she really that stupid?’ Keiko had these thoughts while she desperately tried to not let them show. Ann wasn’t in good enough shape to take care of Shiho. Ryuji, of all people, took off after her when Shiho scrambled to her bed.

“I didn’t realize she was-”

“I get it,” Keiko said. “We didn’t go into too much detail. She’ll be fine.”

“Will she? The guy that followed her seems like kind of a dipshit,” Anna frowned.

“He is,” Keiko tried to keep her calm. “But he’s shockingly thoughtful. Ryuji doesn’t seem like it, but he’s a total mama’s boy.”

“Big time,” Ren interrupted, slurring his words. 

“He’s always been like that,” Ann said. She’d tried to get up once but the liquor started calling the shots. Ann was luckily standing above the couch when she fell backwards. “I still give him shit for the time he borrowed money from me at the aquarium. He wanted to buy his mom a souvenir.”

“Keiko,” Makoto interrupted. “Think you could go check on them? You’re the only one that’s in a state to-”

“Sure, Mako.” Keiko nodded, standing up off the couch. She took a break after Haru mentioned the Phantom Thieves.

Then she walks in on Shiho almost literally pouncing on Ryuji, who stumbled back off the bed and onto his butt. ‘She’s a lot more forward than I am,’ Keiko thought, her cheeks almost definitely a little red. They hadn’t noticed her company yet.

“Shiho, you’ve had a bit to drink,” Ryuji said. “If you still feel like doing that in the morning, fine, but you’re not in a state to make decisions like that.”

Shiho leaned back on the bed, pouting. Ryuji looked over.

“How much did you see?”

“I won’t say anything,” Keiko said. 

“Thanks,” Ryuji nodded. He looked back towards Shiho. “Are you going to be okay?”

Keiko hadn’t ever thought of a burp as cute before, but Shiho let a small one out before nodding. “Thanks, Ryuji.” 

He started heading back towards the party when Shiho stopped him again.

“You’re a good person, you know that?”

He shook his head and left.

“What happened?” Keiko raised an eyebrow before sitting in a spot similar to where Ryuji was. 

“I’d rather not dwell,” Shiho said. She wore a small smile, and she had her knees pulled up to her chest. “I’m not the only person dealing with some demons. I need to remember that.”

“We all get you, Shiho-”

“I know,” she smiled. “I know.”

“So, why were you trying to kiss Ryuji?”

Shiho practically jumped in her seat. She unfolded her legs and leaned back against the headboard. “Because the only other person who’s ever made me feel that safe is Ann, and she’s made it plenty clear she’s not interested. I’m also not exactly thinking clearly.”

“You and Makoto,” Keiko chuckled. 

“Making out seems like way more fun when I’m drunk.”

Keiko sighed dreamily. “You have no idea. I might go-”

“I’m right behind you,” Shiho said. “I mean, I’m following you back. Not like, in line to make out with Makoto, but if you’re offering-”

===

_ Friday, September 9, Morning _

Keiko woke up to familiar warm hands on her own bare skin. She had to do a quick check to make sure she was still wearing clothes, although the existence of her pants and her uncomfortably twisted shirt meant Makoto was just getting handsy. She breathed a sigh of relief. She didn’t want their first time to be something neither of them would remember. 

Makoto groaned as Keiko’s stirring broke her away from her sleep. Her grip around Keiko’s waist tightened. “No.” 

“No, what?” Keiko tried to hide a smile.

“You can’t get up.”

“Well, unless you feel like cleaning piss-stained sheets, you better let me go.” 

Makoto made a disgusted noise and released Keiko from the prison of her arms. Meanwhile, giggles came from the other bed.

“Uh, we aren’t alone,” Keiko turned over and stood up, glancing at the other bed.

“Sorry, Keiko-chan,” Haru shrugged. “We couldn’t go back to my room and Hifumi-chan didn’t feel safe walking back to hers alone.”

Hifumi and Haru were sitting in a closeness Keiko found familiar. “Are you two, uh-”

“There’s nothing in my contract that says I can’t date women,” Haru said with a grin. “Besides, I’ve always been curious.”

Keiko raised an eyebrow at Hifumi. “And you’re okay just being a loophole?”

Hifumi wasn’t quite awake yet. She was sleepily resting her head on Haru’s shoulder. “That’s just an,” she paused for a thought. “A strategic advantage. I’ll take any opening I can get.”

Makoto huffed. “You play too much shogi.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Coincidentally, much of this chapter's writing was fueled by Pabst Blue Ribbon. I don't have much to really say about this chapter. Hawaii's been a fun break from everything, but I'm excited to be back writing actual plot points that further the story along. Would you believe me if I said I might have this story finished by the end of February?


	23. Hawaii (Part Three)

_ Friday, September 9, Afternoon _

Keiko sheepishly knocked on Kawakami’s door. An either very hungover or very tired or some combination of both, Kawakami answered. Keiko couldn’t tell if Kawakami was giving her a dirty look or if she was too tired to provide any friendly interaction. Kawakami cut her off before she could even start speaking. 

“Did anyone get hurt?”

Keiko startled. “No.” The night went off without a hitch unless Shiho attacking Ryuji’s face with her lips counted as a hitch. 

“Is anyone hungover to the point where they’re sick?” Kawakami’s eyes felt like lasers cutting into Keiko.

“No.” Ren was the only person who got close to what Keiko would classify as knackered, and that started after one shot and a single beer. He probably wasn’t dealing with a hangover. She’d have heard about it from Ryuji if he was.

“Did anyone  _ besides _ me hear you? Did anyone call the cops?”

‘No.”

“Then honestly, Keiko, I don’t give a shit what you guys did last night.” Kawakami sighed. “I spent my night drinking with Kosei’s chaperones in my room.”

“Ha!” Keiko smiled at her. “So, what’s my punishment? Do I have to spend my lunch with you again?”

Kawakami looked confused. “What? I’m not punishing you.”

“I’m asking you to get lunch with me, Becky,” Keiko sighed. “It was a joke.”

Her cheeks gained some color, but she didn’t admonish Keiko for the use of her nickname. “That sounds like fun. I need McDonald’s.”

“Why McDonald’s? We have McDonald’s in Japan. Why would we go to McDonald’s?”

“Oh, to be young and stupid,” Kawakami chuckled. “The only time their food tastes good is when you’re too hungover to cook for yourself.”

“How much of your diet as an adult consists of food you only eat because you’re too hungover to cook?”

“Not as much as you’re thinking but still more than is acceptable,” Kawakami said. “It happens less often now that I actually get to go home after school.”

McDonald’s coffee was not good. The walk there was long and silent. Kawakami was hungover, and Keiko was exhausted. This meant the walk to the nearest McDonald’s, which wasn’t as close as the Big Bang Burger, was awkward and strained. Kawakami  _ tried _ to make conversation but Keiko couldn’t muster more than a grunt, and it was obvious Kawakami’s pounding head had her feeling off. Keiko was more focused on the tropical air, which she decided wasn’t all that different from home. The biggest difference she noticed was the noise. There were people on the streets and cars on the road, but it wasn’t as busy as Tokyo. 

They sat across from each other on benches that could be called booths if Keiko was being generous. They didn’t have padding and had the same plain-wood design as the tables. Every second spent in that place reminded Keiko why she hated McDonald’s. 

Kawakami was right, though. McDonald’s the morning after drinking too much definitely hit the spot. ‘How much does Ohya spend at McDonald’s? That’s a thought for later.’ Kawakami was in the middle of scarfing down her second hamburger and her second cup of coffee when she broke the silence. 

Keiko winced, caught off guard. She was too busy watching their school chaperone eat in a very Kasumi-ish way. 

“So, how long have you and Makoto been sharing a bed?”

“What?” Keiko didn’t have time to get into character.

Kawakami sighed. “Haru told me she was going to stay in your room last night because you had an extra bed.”

“Well, I prefer the couch because-” It was a weak lie, so Keiko stopped talking when she noticed Kawakami staring daggers through her. 

“Want to try again? You know, without the lying.” She could hear the teacher tapping her foot on the floor expectantly.

Keiko tried to fight the need to chew her fingernails. “I, uh,” Keiko’s eyes shifted. “When I first started staying over at Makoto’s it was because she doesn’t handle being alone very well ever since her father died. Her sister is barely ever home, so I started staying over.” ‘This really isn’t a lie,’ Keiko thought. “We eventually discovered we both sleep better when we have someone to cuddle with.”

Kawakami frowned. “I forgot about that.”

“Makoto prefers it that way, I think,” Keiko sighed. “She tries hard to be strong for others.”  _ ‘For me,’ _ Keiko meant. 

“Just another student that’s been forced to pick up the pieces as Shujin unravels into chaos,” Kawakami said with a sigh. 

“Did something happen?” Keiko raised an eyebrow.

“Not that I know of.” Kawakami took a big gulp of her coffee. “I’m torn between being proud of you kids for how well you’ve adjusted and fearful that Shujin just became the world’s most valuable school for con artists.”

They started walking back to the hotel as Kawakami finished airing her thoughts.

“I’m surprised you didn’t ask me what I meant,” Kawakami said with a friendly smile. 

Keiko shook out of her thoughts. ‘Am I hitting another growth spurt or is Kawakami slouching?’ She noticed she might’ve been the same height as the teacher now. “Last night was a long night.”

“Oh. Well, I’ll pretend you asked.” She checked around to make sure there weren’t any Shujin students near. “I just get a bad feeling watching you and Makoto sneak around, and Haru told me some of what she’s going through. And then there’s the Phantom Thieves, a group born because the faculty did such a piss poor job making sure students  _ didn’t _ get raped on school grounds by a teacher we were all suspicious of. It’s deflating. Are we all this worthless?”

“I think you’ve done an admirable job-”

“But I didn’t speak up earlier,” Kawakami sighed. “I spoke up when it was safe.”

“Hey, I had my head in the sand, too,” Keiko shrugged. “I only stepped in because the guy threatened  _ me.” _

“You’re just a kid. All you should have had to do was tell an adult,” Kawakami’s voice cracked. “It doesn’t take a genius to tell what was happening. Hell, they make us take training courses on that  _ exact _ situation every summer.” 

Keiko didn’t know what to say, so she didn’t say anything.

“We’re all just so scared,” Kawakami said. “Do you remember that train accident when the semester started?”

“That was the same day I met Ren and Sumire,” Keiko mumbled.

“Isn’t it weird how nobody at school mentioned Mr. Okina ever again?”

“Uh,” Keiko said. “What do you mean? I thought he retired.”

Okina had been a math teacher for nearly a century. She remembered writing a story on his retirement.

“He did,” Kawakami said. “He was forced into retirement.”

“Why?” He hadn’t mentioned anything about that to Keiko, but she hadn’t asked.

“I never got to ask. He was on that train.”

“They blamed that accident on the Minister of Transportation-” Keiko stopped her thoughts from being too loud. 

“Okina would have been the other chaperone on this trip,” Kawakami said. They’d sat on a bench somewhere between the hotel and McDonald’s. “They didn’t even bother replacing him. They just had me and Chouno split up his courses. Have you ever seen her try and do even basic math?”

Keiko shook her head.

“It’s not pretty.”

“Do you think the train accident was a mental shutdown?” Keiko sighed when Kawakami gave her a peculiar look.

“What’s that have to do with anything?”

“Remember Rio Fujinami?”

Kawakami nodded. “She was a first-year. I don’t know much else about her.”

“You’ll know more about her soon. I found her.”

“Was she missing?”

Keiko nodded. “She’s having a hard time. Her parents are dead.”

Kawakami looked as nervous as Keiko felt. “Are you insinuating they had mental shutdowns?”

Keiko shrugged. “You had a good reason to keep your head in the sand. I’ll leave it at that.”

She looked panicked. “Keiko, please just go to-”

“The second I go to an authority in an official capacity, the Sword of Damocles falls and I’m no longer alive,” Keiko cut her off. “I’m telling you this so you don’t do anything stupid.”

Kawakami stood up, and Keiko followed. They walked back to the hotel while Keiko fought off intrusive thoughts. ‘If anything, telling Becky made her  _ more likely _ to do something stupid.’ 

===

Makoto was busy with Haru, who had a million questions about topics Keiko didn’t care to discuss and Ryuji was off having a ‘talk’ with Shiho, which meant Ann was probably nearby eavesdropping on them. 

Keiko would have been bored had she not run into Ren and Yusuke saying their farewells as Yusuke ran off to go paint something that caught his eye. ‘I wonder if he found another lobster,’ Keiko thought.

She tapped Ren on the shoulder as Yusuke walked off. “What you up to?”

Ren turned around and Keiko noted he looked a lot better off this morning. “I’m losing my mind.”

“Me too,” Keiko said with a grin. “It’s hard being away from home when there’s work I could be doing.”

Ren nodded. “We should go grab coffee or something. If I’ve learned anything, caffeine makes me feel better.”

Keiko hadn’t been back at the hotel for very long but she wasn’t feeling too terrible from the walk back. “I know a place not too far from here.”

They walked to the place where Keiko interviewed Anna and took a seat in the same booth. Ren didn’t make a face when he tried the coffee, which meant it must’ve been good. Keiko didn’t think it measured up to LeBlanc and he didn’t argue, but he also didn’t seem too interested in that conversation.

He was either hungover or had his mind on something else.

“What’s eatin’ you?”

Ren shrugged, took a deep breath, then lowered his head. “Uh, have you talked to Kasumi?”

“Not in a few days,” Keiko raised her eyebrow. “Why?”   
“She sent me a message. She’s in Hawaii, too.” He held out his phone.

**UltraViolet:** senpai, we need to talk

**UltraViolet:** I haven’t been honest with you

**Joker:** what? Did something happen?

“Did she find out about-”

“She’d have told me if she found out,” Keiko said. “I don’t think she knows about your other job.”

“Should I tell her?” It was the only time Keiko had ever seen actual fear in his eyes. It made him look a lot younger.

Keiko shook her head. “In time, sure. But if she’s going to confess something, let her confess. It’s obviously got her feeling down.”

“Right,” Ren said. He finished his coffee. “Sorry. I’m pretty shit company right now.”

“Work always cheers me up,” Keiko said. “I’ve got two big stories I’m putting together.”

“Anna was telling me about the one,” Ren’s expression turned from somber to friendly. “She was pretty cool.”

“You have a girlfriend.”

“She’s probably leaving me, though.”

Keiko stomped on his foot. “Positive thoughts.”

“Ow,” Ren mumbled.

“But yeah, I’m gonna stick my nose in Okumura’s business and see if I can drum up some bullshit that doesn’t involve Haru selling her body. Know anyone that works at Big Bang Burger?”

Ren frowned. “Not that I recall. I could find somebody, though. That’d be a sinch.”

“You have a plan in mind already?” Keiko watched Ren’s frown shift into a pensive look.

“No Good Tora is bound to know somebody,” Ren said. “He’s been trying to convince retail and restaurant workers to unionize.”

Keiko frowned. “That seems like a good way to end up with tar bleeding out of your eyes. Not that I disagree with him but-”

“He’s been good about keeping his name out of it,” Ren said, then grinned. “You’re right, working really does make me feel better.”

“Makoto’s going to kill me,” Keiko huffed. “I was told explicitly that I was to relax.”

“You should take her advice-” Both Ren and Keiko had the instinct to look towards the door when a bell jingled, signifying someone walking in.

“Senpais?” A familiar red-headed girl bounded through the door. “What are you doing here?”

Ren grinned. “I could ask you the same. Why aren’t you at your training camp?”

If something was wrong, Kasumi didn’t show it. She was all smiles. “We just wrapped up the camp, so I have a couple days to relax. I was actually going to pick up coffee and surprise you.” 

Something made Keiko feel fuzzy inside about the way they smiled at each other. It was something Makoto would do for Keiko on a bad day.

“I really do need to talk to both of you,” Kasumi said, then her cheeks turned red. “Senpai!” She sat next to Ren. “I realized later that my text probably came off as really cryptic and I didn’t mean for it to.”

“It’s okay,” Ren said. “Did something bad happen?”

“Something  _ weird _ happened,” she said. “I-” she stuttered. “I’m over it. Deep breaths, Sumire.” She spoke more to herself than to either of them. 

“Sumire? What’s this about her?”

“I, uh, when I got to Hawaii, it was like-” she shivered. “Like a fog lifted.”

Kasumi swallowed hard.

“You don’t have to talk about your sis-”

“Ren, please,” she said. “Just let me get on with this.”

Keiko’s mind raced. Kasumi rarely brought up her sister unprompted, and she  _ never _ referred to Ren as just Ren.

“I think there’s something supernatural going on at the school,” Kasumi said. “I think it involves me.”

“How is that possible?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. 

“I don’t think it is. I had myself convinced I was crazy but especially since this summer, I’m realizing something is wrong. I’ve consulted Dr. Maruki and he assures me I exhibit no signs of psychosis.” She grabbed Ren’s hand. “I’m sorry if I’ve been distant this summer.”

“I haven’t really noticed,” Ren said. “You’ve seemed like yourself.”

“Anyway, what did you mean by fog?” Keiko didn’t want them to get into one of those extensive deep discussions couples sometimes get into.

“Right,” Kasumi took a deep breath. “Something at the school makes me think I’m my sister.”

“What? You’ve always been Kasumi to us-”

“And that’s not right. I’m not Kasumi,” she said, choking on her words. “I’m Sumire. I’ve been Sumire and I always will be, and I don’t- I don’t feel comfortable at Shujin.”

Keiko and Ren were both stunned into silent stares.

“I understand if neither of you wants anything to do with me,” Sumire said. She started to stand but Ren grabbed her hand.

“How much of the last few months was Sumire and how much of it was Kasumi?”

“I’ve been pretty bad at acting like Kasumi,” she shrugged. “I was never the standout athlete she was. I’ve always been the better cook. I was always shy. It finally makes sense why I fell off so much in gymnastics.”

“It explains why the school’s expectations for you were so high,” Keiko said. “Do they know you’re not your sister?”

“I was registered as Sumire but I introduced myself as Kasumi.”

Keiko furrowed her brow. “Shujin is so incompetent that they might not even realize the difference.”

“I don’t think they have noticed.” Sumire frowned. “I understand if you both want nothing to do with me-”

“Ah, if you think I’m keeping my nose out of this, you don’t know me very well,” Keiko grinned.

“But Ren, if you don’t want to date anymore, I get it-”

“Uh, well,” Ren rubbed the back of his head. “You said you’ve been more Sumire than Kasumi since school got out.”

Sumire nodded. “Coach Hiraguchi told me she was glad I was back to my old self. That’s when I noticed something was wrong.”

“-and it’s why you blamed yourself when I passed out.”

“Yes!” Sumire nodded eagerly. “I forgot about that! That time you passed out was right after I noticed something was wrong for the first time. I was actually going to ask you if you’d noticed anything weird.”

Keiko chewed the inside of her lip. “Well, I have. Every time somebody referred to you as Sumire, I would get his muffled noise and I’d be dazed for a second. It actually happened the first time I was on TV.” ‘Was that the first time?’

“Well, there’s one piece of evidence that something’s off,” Ren said. Keiko could practically read his mind. ‘Is he going to tell her?’ “What else do we have?”

“Well, I don’t have much else. I think this all relates to a field called cognitive-” Keiko and Ren both held their breaths. “Psychology.”

Keiko exhaled. 

“The study of the mind and how it processes information,” Sumire said. “I’ve been digging into it, and I think my trauma has changed how I process certain information.”

“Have you mentioned this to Dr. Maruki?” Ren had his elbows on the table, his chin resting on his steepled fists.

“He called it nonsense,” Sumire shrugged. “He asked if thinking I was Kasumi was inherently harmful, and we had a disagreement.”

“What was the disagreement over?”

“Honesty is important to me,” Sumire said, shifting her eyes towards Keiko. “Moreso since I transferred to Shujin and saw the damage done by withholding information for the sake of convenience. He didn’t see the harm in allowing my friends to believe I was my sister. I wholeheartedly disagreed.”

“Wouldn’t he need a psychology degree to be a therapist?” Keiko raised her eyebrow.

“Clinical psych isn’t the same as research-based psych,” Sumire said. “His job is to make me feel better. Cognitive psychology is about understanding why I’m processing things the way I am. That doesn’t mean it’s going to make me feel better. I haven’t asked him this, but I suspect he is using some form of hypnosis in my therapy.”

“Against your will?”

Sumire nodded. “I would like to understand his method before I confront him.”

Keiko frowned. She had an unethical idea. “I’m wholly against this because Japan has two-party consent laws for a reason, but I could get you some covert recording equipment for your next session.”

Ren chuckled. “We’re sending her to therapy wearing a wire like it’s a drug deal.” His laughter didn’t last long. “Why didn’t you tell me if you’ve known about this for so long?”

“I didn’t want to scare you away,” Sumire mumbled. “Ultimately, trying to unscramble a conspiracy that affects only me makes me seem like a narcissistic paranoid schizophrenic. I haven’t ruled out that’s what I am, either.” She leaned her head on Ren’s shoulder.

“Neither of us think you’re crazy, or disordered, or anything like that,” Keiko said. “If anything, this helps me make sense of everything going on at Shujin. There’s more weird there than just your problems.”

Sumire nodded. They eventually finished their coffee and delved into less stressful discussion like turning tomorrow into a final beach day, and what type of animal Keiko was going to get when they returned to Tokyo on Sunday. Ren made a strong argument for a cat, especially since a dog would need an outdoor space Keiko didn’t have at her apartment.

===

_ Evening _

Keiko was apprehensive when Kawakami called all the Shujin and Kosei students together for a luau. Both schools were able to pool their leftover funds together to throw what ended up being a pretty great party. Keiko learned more about Hifumi’s decision to ask out Haru after Haru drunkenly told the party about her arranged marriage. 

“Technically, she can’t date other men,” Hifumi told Keiko. Hifumi was perfectly fine with being a loophole, looking at it as a strategic advantage that allowed her to exploit Haru’s curiosity. Keiko would have found that off-putting but it was a deal that worked from both perspectives. 

She admired Hifumi’s confidence. “I’m pretty great,” Hifumi had told her. “If she doesn’t like me, it’s her loss.” She also might’ve gushed for too long about being taken with Haru’s looks, which Keiko could relate to. They were moving far faster than Keiko and Makoto had.

She also had a long discussion with Yuuki, who didn’t understand why the Phantom Thieves were so accepting of her when they wouldn’t even let him hang out with them on occasion. Keiko scrambled away and to Makoto for safety. She didn’t know how to tell him that Operation Maidwatch had landed him on the shit list of every female Phantom Thief, even if they were on good terms with Becky. Ryuji spent his time in the dog house and grew from it. Even in Keiko’s limited knowledge of the subject, she understood that Yuuki had not gone through the same maturation process. 

Makoto was off in a corner with Sumire listening rapt to the explanation. Sumire might not have picked up on Makoto’s excitement to hear an actual scientific explanation of a Metaverse-esque situation but Keiko picked it up immediately with the way Makoto’s eyes would flash and her ears would wiggle when she reacted to something Sumire said and- Keiko decided to focus on butting in on their conversation instead of her adorable girlfriend. 

“Are you really convinced it’s the school that’s causing your problems?”

“I’m not,” Sumire confessed. “It’s the only one I can prove. Don’t be surprised if I’m pretending I’m Kasumi on Monday morning.”

Makoto raised an eyebrow. “You’d think being aware of the problem would help you address it.”

“I think it will,” Sumire said. “But I’ve been aware for over a month. I revert back every time I step foot in the school.”

“Is there anywhere else?”

Sumire looked away and nodded. “I’m still experimenting.”

Keiko interrupted. “I’m just imagining you in glasses and a little white lab coat and it’s one of the cuter thoughts I’ve ever had.”

Sumire blushed. “I actually left my glasses at home. I can’t see without them.”

“Holy shit,” Keiko said. “What if that’s why gymnastics hasn’t been going well?”

“It definitely didn’t help, although I wasn’t as good as Kasumi in the first place.”

“Well, you’re more than welcome to continue training with us,” Makoto said. “Maybe it’ll give you some kind of edge.”

“You could teach her some submissions,” Keiko chuckled. “Can’t stick the landing with a broken leg-” Makoto grabbed her ear. “Ow! You’re setting a bad example.”

Makoto shrugged. “The precedent has been set. They’re already afraid of me, so I’ll just lean into it.”

Keiko rubbed her ear. “Uh, maybe you could grab me like that-”

“Keiko!” Makoto admonished. “You can’t just say that kind of thing in front of Sumire.”

Sumire’s red cheeks told them to tone it down more than her words would. Keiko decided a change in subject would be best.

“So, what should we call you until we figure this out? Like, we see you at school mostly but typically dead-naming somebody is a no-no.” Keiko shrugged. ‘I guess this is slightly more complicated than say, somebody who’s non-binary.’

“Sumi would work,” Sumire nodded. “Kasumi wouldn’t notice. Plus, Keiko’s been calling me that for a while anyway.”

===

_ Late Evening _

**Alibaba:** I’ll have what she’s having.

That’s what Keiko’s lone text message read, and she’d have seen it and been horrifically embarrassed if she wasn’t extremely  _ busy _ at the second it came. Her mind was slowing down when she finally started having what she thought were rational thoughts. ‘I should send Ren a thank you card or something,’ Keiko thought. And then it started again. And then there was pounding.

‘Pounding?’ 

“Mako-” Keiko said, hushed by how  _ different _ her voice sounded. “There’s someone at the door.”

Makoto looked up at her with panicked eyes. 

“Get dressed,” Keiko whispered. “Hurry!” 

They decided they’d have their first time that night after the luau. Makoto peeled away and hurriedly slipped her pajama pants and a shirt on. Keiko still wore a shirt and dug around the bed for her shorts. They were there somewhere. 

The pounding continued.

“Coming!” She yelled, blushing at the double entendre. 

Makoto made it to the door first. ‘Poor Mako,’ Keiko thought. She hadn’t been on the receiving end of any attention yet.

“Miss Kawakami-”

Kawakami brushed right past her. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know who else to talk to.”

“What happened?”

The teacher looked worried, but made a face and sniffed. “It smells like sex in here-” she shook her head. “No pregnancy risk, don’t care.”

“Becky, what the fuck happened?” Keiko was probably loud enough that Ann and Shiho could hear her. 

“Principal Kobayakawa is dead,” Kawakami said. 

“No way.” Keiko went white. 

“I don’t know much more than that,” Kawakami said. “I just-” she stammered. “What do I tell everybody?”

“I’ll see what I can dig up,” Keiko said, picking up her phone and blushing at the last message from Futaba. She had more from Futaba.

**Alibaba:** Ren what’s the doctor’s number

**Joker:** it’s sent. Why you need it?   
**Alibaba:** I might’ve been spying on her

**Alibaba:** anyway the cops are looking for her. Tryin to help

**Joker:** what’d she do?

**Alibaba:** wrong place, wrong time. Not sure on deets. Scanner is cutting out and she’s sneaking around.

**Harufying:** what’d you hear?

**Alibaba:** gurgling noises. Horrified gasps. Then a loud crash

**SendNews:** shutdown?

**Alibaba:** yep.

**Harufying:** Can you get her a message?

**Alibaba:** yes.

**Harufying:** 2312 134th St. in Setagaya. Send her there. Nakano-san will meet her at the door. I have a safe house on the 47th floor.

**Alibaba:** yes ma’am

**RiseFan2201:** hi yes operator i jumped off a roof and now my friends are acting like terrorists

**Joker:** thanks for stepping up, Haru

**Harufying:** any friend of yours is a friend of mine

**Harufying:** Also I’m pretty sure my dad is the one that had Kobayakawa killed

**SendNews:** are we sure Haru’s not a Phantom Thief?

**Alibaba:** ...I have the crash footage from a nearby security cam. 

**Alibaba:** definite mental shutdown. They’re going to make it look like Takemi pushed him. Tar doesn’t hide it

**SendNews:** make copies, send to me. Thanks.

Makoto sat next to Keiko on the bed. A hand on her back made Keiko jump. 

“It was a mental shutdown,” Keiko told Kawakami. 

“What?” The teacher looked at her incredulously. “How could you possibly know?”

“I’ve got a friend that watches the scanner.”

“Keiko, there’s nothing you can do from here,” Makoto said, her hand caressing circles on her girlfriend’s back. “We’ll be back in Tokyo on Sunday. You can-”

Keiko didn’t let her finish. “I have the footage and enough to write an obituary. I’ll have it done in a bit, and we can go back to our night.” She looked at Kawakami. “Do you know Kobayakawa’s first name?”

“Jun,” Kawakami said. 

“I should be able to piece the rest together from information available online.”

Makoto nodded. “You’re going to do this no matter what I say.”

“Something like that,” Keiko sighed. “Next week is going to be hell.”

===

_ Sunday, September 11, Afternoon _

Nobody felt much like enjoying the rest of their vacation, so they didn’t. Keiko and Ren racked their brains trying to find the reason Kobayakawa was a mental shutdown candidate. What did he have to do with anything?

Kamoshida was the only connection either of them could make, so they stopped trying to make connections.

Keiko sighed. Her apartment was dusty and empty. Makoto wouldn’t be gone long. She returned home to pick up her things and explain to Sae that she’d be staying over for at least a few days. Dr. Takemi and Rio were staying in Haru’s safehouse. 

**Keiko:** Are you guys doing okay?

**Rio:** I’m fine. I’ve never seen Tae scared before.

**Keiko:** She probably should be scared.

**Rio:** You think Kobayakawa was involved?

**Keiko:** idk what to think

**Rio:** it makes more sense if he was

**Rio:** who died that benefited him?

**Keiko:** Okina-sensei

**Rio:** idk who that is

**Keiko:** he was a teacher before you started. Had plans to come forward with abuse allegations on Kamoshida

**Rio:** Oh. Well.

**Rio:** Guess we have our answer

**Keiko:** No proof tho

**Rio:** none of this has proof.

Keiko jumped up when there was a knock on the door, assuming it was Makoto. It wasn’t.

“Dr. Takemi,” Keiko said, opening the door and letting the doctor in. “Come on. Sit down.”

Takemi was uncharacteristically shaky. “Thought I’d stop by.”

“How are you feeling?”

“Terrible. He just-” she choked. “He just collapsed. And it was so black. And I-”

“Dr. Takemi, you don’t need to talk about it if you can’t-”

“No. I mean, yes, I’m not ready to talk about it.” She huffed. “I did something stupid.”

“What did you do?”

“I collected a sample,” Takemi said. “Of the tar. I have a vial of it. Nakano and Sojiro helped me procure some of my equipment from my clinic unseen.”

“What would you even do with a sample?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. This was something unforeseen, something incredible and as Takemi said, also quite stupid. “Wait, did Sojiro break into your clinic?”

Takemi ignored the question about Sojiro. “I thought I could make an antidote.”

“An antidote to mental shutdowns?”

“That was my first idea,” Dr. Takemi said. “But I quickly realized that this black substance is- well. It’s non-substantial. Its composition is a mess that makes no sense. Every time I look at it through a microscope, it’s a completely different substance. I’ve even reused the same sections of the sample over and over again.”

“That-” Keiko thought about what little science she knew. “That doesn’t make any sense to me, but even if it made sense, it probably wouldn’t make sense to me.”

“Right,” Dr. Takemi said. “Not a science person. That’s fine. Just know that this is extremely unusual. You know the rule that matter can neither be created nor destroyed?”

“Everyone knows that,” Keiko said. “And the mitochondria is the powerhouse-”

“Of the cell,” Takemi rolled her eyes. “This is a case where matter isn’t just being created and destroyed, but it’s completely unmaking and remaking itself.”

Keiko tried to think of anyone she knew that could help. She knew nobody. “Maybe we can ask Haru if she knows anyone, but I’m worried her connections would trace back to her father.”

“Do they not get along?”

“He tried to sell her to the highest bidder and now she’s a lesbian because her contract said she can’t sleep with other men.”

“Fuck, that’s some incredible levels of spite,” Takemi said. “Am I safe here?”

“She owns the building separate from her father. You’ll be safe.”

Tae nodded. “I need to get back.”

“I have leftovers if either of you are hungry,” Keiko said. 

Tae took her up on the offer, and they’d be back later. Keiko checked her phone.

**Makoto:** I stopped in Yongen

**Makoto:** The clinic is swarming with cops. I asked who they were looking for. Takemi’s a person of interest, not a suspect

**Keiko:** do we trust the cops?

**Makoto:** nope

**Keiko:** good girl

**Makoto:** is it weird that that

**Makoto:** nevermind

**Keiko:** I’m thinking of sending the camera footage to your sister

**Makoto:** You’d think prosecution would have it already.

**Keiko:** we both know better than to think anything works as it should

The security footage was a sight to behold. The fact that Kobayakawa lived that close to a police precinct and Dr. Takemi still got away tickled Keiko in a sardonic way. She’d been walking behind Kobayakawa, he made it to a crosswalk, and she yelled something. There was no audio, but Keiko could tell she was arguing with him.

Then he collapsed and the familiar black oozed from his eyes. He fell into the street. Then the light turned green and a driver who wasn’t paying attention nailed him. Keiko slumped back into the couch. ‘I’m getting too comfortable with gore.’ She forwarded the video to Sae and had a response in minutes.

**Keiko:** thought you’d want this

**_Keiko attached a video file_ **

**Sae:** Where’d you find this?

**Keiko:** building across the street kept security footage on a public server

**Sae:** the building across the street is a police station

**Keiko:** yup.

**Sae:** I swear to fucking god these stupid fucking cops

**Keiko:** you said it, not me

**Sae:** ...and Makoto’s mad at me again

**Keiko:** have you tried not working for the fascist?

**Sae:** a man is dead

**Keiko:** i cope with humor. Deal with it

**Sae:** So, i’m guessing you think Tae Takemi is innocent

**Keiko:** I know she is

**Sae:** Did you know she runs an unauthorized apothecary out of her clinic?

**Keiko:** oh no what ever will we do the pharmaceutical industry  _ needs _ that money

**Sae:** From what I’ve gathered she’s extremely unprofessional

**Keiko:** And I’m professional? You don’t seem to have a problem with me

**Sae:** you aren’t a doctor

**Keiko:** so you’d have a problem if I was a doctor?

**Sae:** the world would have a problem if you were a doctor.

**Keiko:** anyway yeah if you’re ignorant enough to ignore the evidence provided I understand why Makoto’s angry

**Sae:** Do you think it was Akechi?

**Keiko:** yes

**Sae:** so does she.

**Sae:** I’ll see what I can dig up. 

Makoto arrived minutes later, storming through the door without greeting. She laid face down on the couch and screamed into a decorative pillow.

Keiko walked over and hesitantly sat on the edge of the couch, not knowing what else she could do besides rub her girlfriend’s back and just be there for her. She understood her frustration.

Makoto took a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself, and Keiko pushed harder, using her fingers to apply pressure in the usual tense areas. The combination of stress and jet lag had Makoto tenser than Keiko had ever seen.

“I just don’t understand why she’ll believe you but never me,” Makoto rolled over and pulled herself into a sitting position. They sat side by side, using each other for support. 

Keiko grasped her hand. “I’m sorry-”

“It’s not your fault,” Makoto said. “I don’t want an apology. I want a change in behavior. From Sae.”

Keiko sighed. “Don’t we all?”

“We’re still looking for another target,” Makoto said. “I’m mulling over throwing Sis’ name out there.”

“Why?”

“If it weren’t for you, she’d still be harassing Sojiro every day. If it weren’t for you, she’d believe every piece of invented evidence the cops give her.” Makoto leaned her head on Keiko’s shoulder. “We can’t keep relying on you to be her conscience.”

“It’s just the nature of the job-”

“Well, maybe it shouldn’t be!” Makoto pulled her head back. “Why are they so obsessed with putting people away? Shouldn’t they be obsessed with getting it right?”

“You’re right. You’re absolutely right, but it’s also the nature of any progress-driven career. What looks better on a record? A 99% prosecution rate or somebody who does a good job to only serve up justice? Who hires a prosecutor who loses 40% of their cases?”

“I can’t believe you’re defending her-”

“I’m not,” Keiko huffed. “I’m not defending her. I’m saying the system needs a change of heart, not the prosecutor. We change one heart, and she quits, and gets replaced by somebody we can’t control or predict.”

“So, you’re saying we should let this go for now?”

“I am. I talked to Sae before you came in. I sent her the security footage. She’s operating under the suspicion that Dr. Takemi is innocent, and she’s searching for a connection to the mental shutdowns,” Keiko said. “Right now, the only connection we can find between Kobayakawa and the mental shutdowns runs through Kamoshida.”

Makoto seemed to perk up a little. “I still wish she’d listen to me first.”

“She will, Mako,” Keiko said. “With time. She’s suffering, too. You’ve both got some trauma to work through.”

Sitting on the couch, relaxing with her girlfriend’s head on her shoulder, and looking out the window was the most normal Keiko had felt in days. ‘We’ll get through this.’

Makoto spoke up after a while.

“Control or predict, huh?” She wore a small smile. “You sound like a yakuza.”

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

“I’ll let you be the judge.”

Keiko discovered something new she enjoyed about having her own private space. 

=== 

_ Evening _

“I forgot to tell you. Takemi and Rio are coming over for dinner.”

Keiko and Makoto shared a warm bed even though it wasn’t early enough to sleep.

“I kind of assumed they would be,” Makoto said. “You’re never going to finish that beef if you’re eating it by yourself.”

“I accept that challenge.”

“You’ll give yourself a coronary,” Makoto sighed. “Have you prepared for club sign-ups tomorrow?”

Keiko jolted, no longer relaxed. “Shit. I completely forgot.”

“One thing at a time. We should probably get dressed.” 

They both showered and got themselves decent, and Keiko texted Rio to let her know they could come over whenever.

Dr. Takemi and Rio were over by the time Keiko finished reheating the leftovers. Things were mostly quiet.

“So-” Rio’s eyes shifted from person to person. “Are we just gonna pretend nothing happened? I’m totally cool with that, but like, I can’t sit in silence for much longer.”

“Sorry,” Keiko chuckled. “I just don’t know how to talk to people that are literally in hiding.”

“That’s fair,” Dr. Takemi said, slurping up some noodles. “It’s a subject I’d like to avoid for now.”

They were silent for a short while, but Rio broke it.

“So, other than the whole cracked egg thing, how was Hawaii?”

“Blue,” Makoto said. “Extremely blue, and sandy, and humid.”

“You guys didn’t do anything?”

“We met our friend’s doppelganger and she bought us booze and we all got very drunk.”

“And you didn’t lead with that because, why exactly?”

Keiko shrugged. “It didn’t seem important.”

Tae and Rio listened attentively to Keiko’s recap of a night that Makoto only had a limited memory of, laughing a few times, but mostly shocked they didn’t get the cops called on them. Then Tae offered a recap of every time she’d avoided arrest prior, although her crimes were never greater than vandalism.

“The only other time I’ve been in this much trouble was when I was in undergrad,” Tae said. “You kids might be a little young for this, so I’ll have to go into some background. Ayumi and I were complete opposites in most ways, but if shit was going  _ down _ we’d both be there. That probably would have made her a great cop, honestly, and I don’t say those two words often.”

“Or a great reporter,” Keiko mumbled. 

“That, too. Anyway, shit blew up after the cops killed a high school kid and the guy who did it got off because it ‘was an accident,’” Takemi put air quotes around it, “and it wasn’t worth ruining the cop’s life over it. We had a few hundred people out protesting in front of the precinct near the courthouse. We felt a bit safer knowing the cops vowed not to use live rounds for calls anymore, so we really just assumed we’d get pushed around with batons and riot shields and what-not. So, we’re marching and we got our signs, all that. Cops come out with fucking tear gas.” 

Tae said it like a punchline to a funny joke. Nobody was laughing. 

“Ayumi is just like, ‘you’re training to be a doctor, help these people!’ Now, it’s undergrad, so I’m about as knowledgeable in the medical field as any of you kids are. I’m struggling with organic chemistry and all that. I did learn a few things, though. I got to see all kinds of shit when I traveled with my dad to New York earlier that summer. Tear-gassing protesters is nothing to American cops, so they’d always have gallons of milk with them. Milk helps deaden the reaction, which I could explain why, but you’re all already looking at me like I’m from a different planet.”

Keiko and Makoto shared concerned glances.

“Anyway, I fucking book it to the nearest 7-11. Hell, I even paid for the milk, which wasn’t normal for me back then. I had a shoplifting habit. Sue me.” Takemi chuckled. “I head over and start pouring it on faces like I’ve seen and then I end up cuffed to a squad car’s door handle for ‘obstructing arrest,’ which is just the most bullshit charge I’ve ever heard. They end up letting me go, though, when they find out that more than half of the protesters they just used a tool of war on were high school students. They didn’t want to deal with the optics, so they made us disperse.”

Keiko wasn’t necessarily surprised that the Tokyo Police would behave that way, but Makoto looked horrified.

“How could they do something like that?”

“They’re cops, Mako,” Keiko said. “We’ve seen them do worse in our limited experience.”

“But-”

“I know, I know,” Keiko said. “Not all cops, all that. But we have two people  _ in front of us _ who have had their lives uprooted because the cops didn’t do their fucking job multiple times.”

It took Keiko most of the night but she was able to cheer Makoto up, especially after they confirmed that her father had nothing to do with what happened to Tae. He was off work that day burying his wife.

‘Consider Makoto no longer cheered up,’ Keiko thought. ‘Fuck.’

===

_ Monday, September 12, After School _

Keiko sat in the news closet working on her story exposing Shujin and Principal Kobayakawa for their horrific handling of Rio Fujinami’s family situation and the death of Mr. Okina, complete with quotes from faculty, former students, and current students who had no clue of either situation. ‘I’m going to enjoy blindsiding these motherfuckers,’ Keiko thought. ‘I wish Kobayakawa was alive to see this.’ She was feeling vindictive. She wouldn’t get her Monday nap, which made her grouchy. 

Her attention snapped away from the school computer when somebody tapped on the door. She’d left it open.

“Hi, Keiko-senpai,” a short, brown-haired first-year popped in. 

“Kaori,” Keiko gave a friendly, tired smile. She hadn’t slept well the night before. Her Monday nap was a necessity. “What’s up?”

“I didn’t see you at club sign-ups,” she said.

“Oh. I didn’t bother. People normally aren’t all that interested in newspapers anymore so I figured I wouldn’t bother. I’ve got stuff to work on,” Keiko started to turn around and get back to work.

“Um! I’d like to join, though,” Kaori said, interrupting Keiko’s dismissal. 

“Me too,” said a less squeaky voice from behind Kaori. It belonged to a taller girl.

“Shimizu?” Keiko couldn’t hide her exasperation. “Sorry, I just didn’t expect anyone would want to join.”

“You should go check out the gym,” Shimizu said. “Your girlfriend set up a table for you.”

“Hey, if you have a problem with that-” Keiko balled up her fist.

Shimizu backed up and gave a frightened look. “No judgment!”

Kaori looked between the two of them confused, but she smartly didn’t say anything. 

“Well, uh, I guess I’ll start training everyone tomorrow after school,” Keiko said. “I don’t know where I’m going to find time for this.” She scrambled to the gym to check the newspaper club sign up sheet Makoto put out for her.

Makoto was in the process of picking up the sheet. “You’re going to need a bigger paper,” she grinned. 

Keiko checked the list. She would finally have enough for a full staff. “I can finally stop running five AP stories per issue!” Her heart soared, and she wrapped her arms around Makoto. “Just letting you know, I’d be kissing you if we weren’t at school.”

“That doesn’t surprise me.”

She eventually decided to check the list of people who signed up.

  1. Kaori Fujioka
  2. Kasumi Yoshizawa
  3. Hikari Shimizu
  4. Yuuki Mishima
  5. Ren Amamiya
  6. Shinya Nishikawa
  7. Mizuki Miyashita
  8. Makoto Niijima



Makoto interrupted her. “I, uh, have some stuff to do.”

“Right,” Keiko said. Ren promised he’d get her a Big Bang Burger employee to speak out. This involved a Metaverse trip. “Stay safe.”

“I love you.”

“Love you, too, Mako.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I use this chapter to rant about how much I dislike McDonald's coffee? Yup. Actually, I don't mind McDonald's coffee. it's just disappointing when somebody says "let's get food/coffee" and then you pull up to the golden arches. Like, there's gotta be a local fast food place, right? There's a cafe near me that does coffee, roast beef and bagels (and they look at you funny if you ask for anything else) and it's the best.
> 
> Kawakami being done with everyone's shit is a fucking mood, and I'm enjoying writing it.


	24. Sumire and Kasumi

_ Monday, September 12, After School _

**Sumire:** Can you meet me at LeBlanc?

**Keiko:** heading there now.

The sleepy streets of Yongen felt unfamiliar to Keiko after her short time away. The numerous stray cats, the drunks, the secondhand store; all of it was so out-of-sight-out-of-mind for Keiko that seeing them again gave her a rush of nostalgia. ‘It’s been like two weeks,’ Keiko thought. But those two weeks had felt like years. Or really, the last several months felt like years. She walked to LeBlanc like a vehicle low on fuel. Coffee would fix part of the problem. 

“Welcome,” Sojiro greeted as she entered the cafe. 

“Hey, Boss,” Keiko replied, taking a seat at the counter. She held her head in her hands.

“You good, kid?” 

“I’m fine,” Keiko sighed. “Stressed out.”

“You just got back from vacation,” he said with a chuckle. “You’re supposed to be all relaxed. I’m surprised you didn’t come back in a Hawaiian shirt or something.”

“Hawaii was fun.” 

“I heard about the principal,” Sojiro said. “I don’t know your feelings on the guy, but you were probably trying to get on the first place back to come home and cover it.”

Keiko removed her face from her hands and sat up straight. “You know me too well.”

“More like Futaba couldn’t sit still the entire time you were gone,” Sojiro shook his head. “She tried to convince me to run to the scene to report what happened.”

“I would pay money to have heard that argument.”

“She probably has a recording of it,” he sighed. “She records  _ everything.” _

Keiko gave a sigh of her own. “It’s helpful, sometimes.”

The bell chimed and Sumire walked through the door.

“Hi, Boss, Keiko-senpai,” she chirped happily. She sat right next to Keiko. 

“You hungry?” He asked Keiko.

She shrugged. “I could eat.”

“And she’s always hungry,” he pointed at Sumire. “I’ll get you two some food.”

“Thanks, Boss,” Sumire said. She seemed less chipper after he walked away. 

“So, I saw you signed up for newspaper club,” Keiko said. “I’m not surprised, but you signed up as-”

“Kasumi,” Sumire frowned. “I know. I swear, I’m fighting it. I can at least remember what I do as Kasumi for now.”

“And it only happens at the school?”

“There’s one other place-” Sumire frowned. Sojiro returning with two cups of coffee and food interrupted her thought. “Thanks, Boss.”

“Any time, kid.”

“It’s pretty lucky that Sojiro never takes the time to learn our names,” Keiko said with a laugh. 

Sumire didn’t find it as funny. “Anyway, there’s a construction site in Odaiba that makes me-” she shuddered. “I don’t know how to explain it. It makes things much, much worse.”

“What’s being built?”

“It’s a stadium,” Sumire said. “It’s supposed to be done in time for the Olympics in a couple years. It was really important to Kasumi that we compete there.”

“It doesn’t make sense why you’d revert there.”

“I’m still looking for a cause,” Sumire said. “It all points back to trauma-related psychosis, and I refuse to believe that’s true. I’m not crazy. At least not in a way that makes me dangerous to others.”

“You aren’t crazy,” Keiko said. “Have you thought about switching therapists?”

Sumire was too busy digging into her food to answer immediately, but she did eventually answer. “I have another therapist I’m seeing,” Sumire confirmed. “I only see Dr. Maruki at school. Uh, it’s Kasumi that likes Dr. Maruki. I almost always leave his office feeling sick.”

Keiko had a disturbing thought. “Does he ever offer you a drink?”

“Of course,” Sumire said. “He always has drinks and snacks-”

“I’m going to sound paranoid, but maybe there’s something in the drinks or snacks that alter your behavior.”

“He would never do anything like that,” Sumire said. “I think he might be a weirdo, and his morals are a bit different than mine.”

“I don’t get that vibe either, but you said you always leave his office feeling sick. Do you enter his office feeling like Sumire or Kasumi?”

“I’m at the school when I see him, so Kasumi,” Sumire said. “I don’t understand what Maruki has to do with this.”

Keiko grunted, and Sumire’s mood shifted.

“You sound like Makoto,” she said, giggling. “She grunts when she’s frustrated.”

“I just feel like I’m hitting a wall with this,” Keiko said. “I’m not frustrated with you, in like, the physical sense.”

“It’s a very confusing situation,” Sumire said. “It’s already stumping multiple doctors, my dad, my gymnastics coach, and a therapist, and it probably should stump the  _ other _ therapist, and it confuses  _ me _ that he isn’t concerned.”

Keiko couldn’t hold back a chuckle. “I’m glad you feel okay joking about this.”

Sumire offered a smile. “Curry makes everything better. And I kind of got all my moping out of my system when I was avoiding telling all of my friends and my boyfriend about my identity crisis.”

“Are you and Ren still-”

Sumire shrugged. “We haven’t gotten to see each other since Hawaii. We held hands on the flight home, though.”

“I’d say that’s a good sign, then,” Keiko said. She took a final drink of her coffee. “Oh, and the newspaper club meets after school tomorrow if you can make it.”

“I’ll be there,” Sumire said. “Think you’d want to take a trip to Odaiba after?”

“Absolutely,” Keiko said. 

“I hope I’m not being presumptuous in assuming you wanted to help-”

Keiko reached an arm over and pulled Sumire into a brief side hug. “Even if we weren’t friends, I’d find a way to help you.”

Sumire leaned into it, then stood up and started to leave. “Make sure you tell Kasumi ‘hi’ tomorrow.” She chuckled at herself as she walked out the door.

Sojiro returned from the dishes he was working on. “That was confusing. Isn’t she Kasumi?”

“It’s an inside joke.”

===

_ Evening _

Keiko greeted Nakano-san at the door, making an extra attempt to be friendly knowing how much neck he stuck out trying to help Dr. Takemi. He was friendly with a warm smile and reminded Keiko of a younger Sojiro. 

She hit the button to go up to her apartment when a loud crashing noise came from behind her. The noise came from a man in a white-sequin suit straight out of a yakuza movie sucker-punching Nakano from behind. He must’ve scrambled through the door when Nakano wasn’t looking. He grabbed Nakano’s keys and bolted towards the elevator, past the doorman’s desk, and around a sitting area.

“What the fuck, man?” Keiko didn’t dare move from in front of the elevator. Whoever he was, he wanted upstairs.

“Get out of the way, kid,” he barked. He didn’t sound all that much older and he didn’t look much older. Keiko guessed him to be in his mid-20s. He had reddish-brown hair, and she tried to note his height. She’d have to file a police report later. 

“I don’t think I will,” Keiko said, setting her feet. He didn’t seem like the kind of guy who would worry about hitting a woman.

“I’m not playing! I need to see my fiance.” His tone didn’t sound like somebody who’d be too happy to see their fiance. He reared a clumsy fist and swung. Keiko swiftly dodged and jabbed at his sternum, knocking him backward. He continued falling backward when somebody grabbed his other arm from behind, and he stopped when a knee shoved into his back. A loud crack echoed through the lobby, an intense cry of pain escaping him immediately following. 

“Mako!” Keiko said. 

Makoto forced the man onto his stomach and held his non-broken arm against his back.

Nakano was back to his feet by then, rushing over with duct tape. Sirens could be heard heading toward the apartment building as he fashioned handcuffs out of duct tape. He wasn’t gentle with the man’s broken arm, the assailant grunting and crying in pain. 

“You made him cry,” Keiko leaned into Makoto. “Good job.”

“I’ll make you pay for this!” The man whimpered. 

Nakano responded before either of the girls could. “You really think Okumura is going to accept you barging into one of their buildings and attacking high school girls?”

“High school-” he whimpered. 

Keiko was hit with a giggle fit. “You got beat up by a high school girl you fucking pussy.”

Nakano ushered them upstairs while he handled the cops. “We’ll have security footage if the cops need a witness. That’s more than enough to get this dipshit charged.” 

Makoto nodded and they went upstairs without a fight. 

Makoto took no time rushing to the couch, patting a spot for Keiko to sit next to her. She was wearing an excited grin.

“Guess what.”

“You broke a grown man’s arm and now you’re extremely horny.”

Makoto winced. “Uh, yes, but also not what I was going to say.” Keiko couldn’t hold back her laughter. “Shinsuke Kishi. That’s your guy.”

“For the Big Bang Burger story?”

Makoto nodded. “Ren said to text him when you need his number.”

“Awesome,” Keiko grinned. “Care to work off the adrenaline now?”

“I have homework that I really need to get to-”

Keiko’s phone buzzed, interrupting the thought. 

**Haru:** I see you’ve met Mr. Sugimura

**Keiko:** No way

**Haru:** I’m so glad Nakano was there. Are either of you hurt?

**Keiko:** No. Makoto broke his arm

**Haru:** She should have finished the job

**Haru:** Sorry. That’s murder. Normal people don’t threaten that.

**Keiko:** She definitely thought about it.

**Haru:** That’s why we’re friends.

**Keiko:** Are you secretly starting some kind of yakuza outfit?

**Haru:** Well, I wouldn’t call it organized crime.

**Keiko:** I can’t tell if you’re kidding

**Haru:** Me neither, at this point.

**Haru:** Tell Mako-chan I said thank you.

**Keiko:** I will

**Keiko:** How’s Hifumi?

**Haru:** Well, she hasn’t broken into any of my buildings in an attempt to kidnap me so I’m going to say she’s doing wonderfully.

**Haru:** I might even reward her

**Keiko:** I don’t even know how to take that

Keiko no longer had access to her phone, as Makoto had pulled it out of her hands.

“Homework,” she said in a stern tone. “Now.”

“Yikes,” Keiko winced. “Not the time but you’re really giving off top energy and I’m-”

_ “Homework!” _ Makoto interrupted, her cheeks turning red.

===

_ Tuesday, September 13, Afterschool _

The news closet was not large enough for the group that showed up to the first newspaper club meeting. Keiko was immediately out of her element leading a group, even if the group was mostly made up of her best friends and first-years.

Makoto moved them into the Student Council room, assuring Keiko it was only temporary until the staff finished cleaning out Kamoshida’s old office. She even got Keiko two additional computers so they could get actual work done. 

Keiko stood at the front of the room with a whiteboard behind her. 

“I don’t address groups often, so I apologize if this is awkward,” she shrugged. “We’re not all Makoto, who’s been presidential since the day she was born.”

“Excuse you-”

“Quiet, Makoto,” Keiko grinned. “Ha. That was great. I’m going to do that more often.”

“Jerk.”

“Anyway, I’d like to go around the room. Tell me your name, year, and what you’d like to cover.” She pointed at one of the first-years that wasn’t Kaori. “You. With the moon earrings.”

“I’m Mizuki Miyashita,” she was almost as short as Fujioka, but not as scrawny. “Kaori’s my step-sister. I’m a first-year. I joined hoping to learn how all this works. I don’t know the terms or anything, but I want to be Prime Minister one day.” She looked around the room as if she expected to be laughed at. Nobody did. “I figured reporting would be a good way to practice my civic duties early.”

Keiko smiled. “Admirable. Hopefully, you still like the government by the time you graduate.”

“I don’t like them now,” Mizuki shrugged. “That’s why I want to be in charge.”

“Welcome aboard, Mizuki-chan,” Keiko said. She pointed to a first-year boy, a tall, gangly kid with a buzzcut and glasses. He didn’t seem comfortable in his own shoes, probably because his legs and arms grew but the rest of him didn’t.

“I’m Shinya Nishikawa,” he mumbled. “I wanna write about sports.”

“Good timing,” Keiko said. “It looks like Shujin’s gonna start having non-volleyball sports again. You’ve already got your first assignment.”

“Look for Nakaoka and Takahase,” Makoto said. “They’ll be happy to talk, just tell them Haru sent you.”

“Who’s Haru?”

“You’re better off not knowing,” Makoto laughed lightly.

Keiko pointed to Shimizu next. “Shimizu-”

“Just Hikari,” she said. “I got a lot to say and nowhere to say it. Noticed ya didn’t have much of an opinion page. Oh, I’m a second-year.” She looked over at Kaori. “And uh, I’m sorry about everything before, Kaori.”

“You don’t have to apologize again!” Kaori’s face blew up to bright red. 

“I know, but I still feel bad, and I kinda feel like I need to do it in front of people and-” she shrugged. “Oh, yeah. I draw, too. Comics and stuff.”

“That’s awesome, Hikari,” Keiko said. “If you want to send me some samples, I’ll take a look. I can help you with writing columns, too. It’s not as easy as you’d think.”

“Lookin’ forward to it,” Hikaru said. 

Kaori took her turn next. “I’m Kaori Fujioka, a first-year. I’m here because Keiko Miyahara is my personal hero and I want to be like her in every way.”

“Oh my god,” Ren couldn’t hold his laughter. “I’m not making fun of you, Kaori, I promise.” 

Keiko couldn’t recall a time where she felt so flattered and embarrassed at the same time. “Makoto was the one that saved you, Kaori,” Keiko said, still recovering.

“But you stand up to the Detective Prince!” Kaori argued back. “It’s so cool! I don’t even get why people like him, he’s just so… pompous. And gross. If he were a woman, everyone would complain that he’s-”

“Alright, Kaori,” Keiko interrupted her. ‘She’s closer to being like me than she thinks.’ “I’m glad I’m not the only one here who hates Akechi.”

Everyone around the room nodded. 

“I take it we’re all pretty anti-Akechi,” Ren said. “I’ll go. I’m Ren Amamiya, hi. The delinquent transfer everyone knows and loves and all that. I once smuggled an elephant tusk across the ocean and helped the drug cartels from Venezuela cross the border into-”

Keiko groaned and rolled her eyes. “Can we get a real introduction?”

“Uh,” Ren shrugged. “I transferred here last spring after a dude falsely accused me of assault. Shit sucked, but I’m alive, and my friends here are way cooler than my friends back home. I’ve worked with Ichiko Ohya before, so I have a little experience. I’ll be honest, though. I’m mostly in this for the gossip.”

This drew a guffaw from Kasumi.

Keiko swiftly pointed out Yuuki Mishima while she tried to figure out how to introduce Kasumi. 

“I’m Yuuki, a second-year. I’ve got experience in graphic and web design. I don’t know how much reporting I’d like to do, but I could pick up tech stories. I’m also a photographer in my free time.”

Keiko raised her eyebrows. “I’ve never had an actual photographer before. And you can do page design, you think?”

“Web or print? Web wouldn’t be a problem,” Yuuki said. “You should get a domain that’s not related to Shujin, though. Page design would take some learning, but I at least understand things like white-space and how to format photos and-”

“Yeah, you’re already further ahead than me. I’ve been living off the same few formats for almost a year,” Keiko said. “Welcome aboard.” Then she pointed to Sumire. “That’s Sumi-chan.”

“Hi, yes,” she said. Ren was making faces at her, so she was trying to recover from the distraction. “I’m a first-year. I can cover whatever is needed. Sports and music are what I know best.” ‘She’s definitely Kasumi right now,’ Keiko noted. “But I picked up a lot from my sister before she died, so anything with food or STEM I can help with. It’ll be a struggle, but I’m trying to branch out.”

“Thanks, Sumi-chan,” Keiko said. “And we all know Makoto?”

“Oh, I don’t get an introduction after you made fun of me to start?” Makoto started tapping her foot. She was met with silence. She sighed. “Fine. I’m Makoto Niijima, Student Council President and third-year. “I’m basically here to make sure Keiko doesn’t work herself to death. Same goes for all of you. Think of me like an assignment editor. I’ll keep my ear to the ground and send out stories if you want something to do. There’s a lot I hear about at this school that could make for stories.”

“Like the Phantom Thieves,” Kasumi said. “Do we know anything about-”

The conversation devolved from there, and Keiko couldn’t help but facepalm while Ren laughed and laughed. 

He was going to have far too much fun with this.

The group eventually dispersed, and while Ren and Makoto had some target hunting to do, Kasumi and Keiko had a construction site to investigate.

Keiko dragged Kasumi into an alleyway she would occasionally use as a shortcut.

“Are you Sumire again?”

The girl shook her head like she was shaking off cobwebs. “Whoa.” She took a deep breath. “I will never get used to that. Can you see it?” She pointed back toward the school.

“See what?”

“The fog.” Sumire said. “Look closely.”

Keiko looked back towards the school. The greystone structure looked as boring and brutalist as it always had. She could see a familiar floofy-haired girl on the rooftop if she looked close enough. “I’m just not seeing it.”

Sumire pulled an extra pair of glasses out of her pocket. “Try these.”

Keiko gave her an odd look and took the glasses, glancing back at the school. She expected to be disoriented, because wearing somebody else’s prescription always made her feel off. She received a different kind of disorientation. She gasped.

“They’re just foggy,” Keiko said. “Let me wipe them on my shirt-”

“No, keep them on.” Sumire said. “Look down the road.”

Keiko looked down the road towards a diner she hadn’t been to but a couple times. “No fog that way.” She looked back the other way, toward the train station. “No fog that way either.”

“It’s just over the school.”

“What do the glasses have to do with it?”

“Kasumi was wearing them when she died,” Sumire said. “She didn’t need glasses, but people would get us mixed up when she wore them. Her favorite practical joke was to have us dress exactly the same and have mom and dad guess who was who. It got more difficult before she died because I hit a growth spurt and finally caught up to her.” 

“You think they’re haunted glasses?”

Sumire shrugged. “Do you believe in ghosts?”

Keiko sighed. “Let’s just head to Odaiba and check out this stadium. If we can see the fog there, I’ll be more inclined to believe you.”

“Keep the glasses,” Sumire said. “I might not give them back if I’m Kasumi.”

They left towards the station and took their train to Odaiba, then followed a sidewalk towards the fencing around a construction site. 

“Right here-” Sumire blinked hard. “What?”

“I didn’t say anything, Sumire,” Keiko looked at her, concerned.

“Oh, Sumire,” she frowned. “I miss her so much.”

‘It really happens that quick,’ Keiko noted. She tried not to look too astonished. “Why’d you bring me here?”

Kasumi gave a pensive look. “I guess I just wanted to show you this. Whenever I have a bad day, I come here.”

“What’s so special about a construction site?” Keiko didn’t know if she had to play dumb or not. They were basically just standing at a blue fence outside of a giant dirt pile. It probably looked suspicious.

“When they announced a stadium this large, Sumire and I so badly wanted to be the first performers. And then they announced it would be for the Olympics, and I just-” Kasumi sat, leaning against the fence, hugging her knees to her chest. “I just want my sister here.”

“I’m sorry, Kasumi,” Keiko said. She put an arm around her friend, who leaned in and sobbed. 

They sat that way for a short while before Kasumi stood up. “Sometimes, a good cry can solve all of my problems. I feel better now.”

“I’m glad I could help,” Keiko said. She pulled the glasses out of her sweater pocket and slipped them on.

“Oh! I didn’t know you wore glasses!”

“I normally have contacts in,” Keiko said. She turned back and looked at the construction site. “Fog,” she whispered to herself. Fog, and something else. A stadium? She tried to strain her eyes to focus harder. A tower. A gigantic silver tower. She couldn’t make out the peak. ‘Sumire was right.’ She couldn’t keep her heart from racing, but she did keep herself from freaking out further.

A purring noise broke Keiko out of her daze, and something soft rubbed against her leg. 

“Oh! A kitty!” Kasumi chirped. 

A little one, an black stray, the sign of bad luck. Except Keiko didn’t feel unlucky. It didn’t have any tags. Its fur was matted and it looked hungry. It had bright yellow eyes.

“Did you escape from a shelter?” She crouched down and scratched the cat on the chin. It accepted the scratches willingly and eagerly. “You look hungry.”

Keiko held her arms out. The cat jumped up.

“She likes you.”

“Yeah,” Keiko said. She had to smile. She pulled out her phone and dialed the number to report a missing cat, but it was the city. A cat in this state probably hadn’t had an owner in a long time.

They stopped at a store for cat food and a litter box, because any extended stay would require each of those things. Then they returned to Keiko’s apartment. Kasumi turned back to Sumire on the train, and Keiko convinced her to stay for dinner. She wanted to play with the cat and more importantly, go over their findings.

===

_ Evening _

“I was told cats don’t like bath time,” Keiko said, working at scrubbing her fur. she purred, and occasionally her little yellow eyes would flash in the light, and she’d bat at Keiko’s arm playfully. Then sometimes, she would lean her head under the faucet and take a drink, then let it run on her face, and then shake the water off. 

“Have you heard back from the police?”

“They didn’t seem too keen on finding her owner,” Keiko frowned. “I highly doubt a cat this affectionate didn’t have an owner.” She dried off the cat, and she was now lounging lazily on the sofa like she’d lived there all along. 

“Maybe something happened to her owner,” Sumire frowned. “There weren’t many homes near the site. That’s a long way for a kitty to travel. Are you going to give her a name?”

Keiko took a second to think. “I didn’t want to give her a name if I couldn’t keep her. I suppose I should take her to a vet tomorrow, too. She could be chipped.”

They sat on the couch playing with the nameless cat for what felt like forever until Makoto returned. Within seconds of Makoto getting home, the cat went to greet her as happily as she greeted Keiko, and promptly tripped her, sending her face first into the floor.

“You were only supposed to fall for me,” Keiko whined mockingly while helping Makoto back to her feet. 

“Hello to you, too,” Makoto grumbled.

“I got a cat.”

“I see that.” She looked down at the newest member of Keiko’s home.

The cat stared back, bright-eyed, then turned around, swished her tail and walked right back to her spot on the sofa. The girls followed.

“So, when did this happen?”   
Keiko retold the tale, sans the fog, of finding the cat at the construction site in Odaiba and how quickly it decided it was coming with them. It sat next to Makoto and despite their rough introduction, she had no problem accepting chin scratches.

“There’s no way a cat this affectionate doesn’t have an owner,” Makoto said. “Have you checked if she’s chipped?”

“We’ll do that tomorrow,” Keiko said. Her phone buzzed from a phone call from a number she didn’t recognize.

“Hi, is this Miyahara?” A male voice said on the other line.

“This is her.”

“I’m Officer Nishiki, I’m on patrol in Odaiba. I saw you reported that you found a cat. Does she have bright yellow eyes?”

“Yes, she does,” Keiko said. “And she’s extremely playful.”

“Oh, the construction workers will be sad,” Nishiki said, laughing. “She’s been stealing their food for months.”

“Will I have to give her back?”   
“Not at all,” the officer replied. “They’ll be happy to know she has a home. Uh, I have a weird question.”

“That’s usually my job,” Keiko chuckled. “But go ahead.”

“This is my cell. Can you send pictures every once in a while? I’m friends with the workers, and they’ll want to know Felicia’s doing okay.”

“I can absolutely do that,” Keiko said. “Thank you so much, Officer.” Then she paused. “Is her name really Felicia?”

“Everyone on that construction site is a dork,” he laughed.

“Okay, one last thing,” Keiko said. “Do you know how old she is?”

“We were talking about this the other day,” he said. “We’re guessing under two years. She’s gotten bigger since she started coming around. She was such a little thing the first time we saw her.” 

They eventually got off the phone after the officer spent a few more minutes gushing about how cute Felicia is, which made Keiko feel a bit guilty about taking her in. The officer assured her it was for the best, but if she really felt guilty, she could bring her by the construction site for a visit.

“So, does she have a name?” Makoto didn’t look amused, and Keiko imagined her rolling her eyes a million times during the conversation with the cop.

“Felicia,” Keiko said, and Sumire giggled. “I just adopted a phantom thief.”

“I don’t-” Makoto must’ve finally understood the joke, because she facepalmed. “She’s a black cat.”

Sumire’s giggle turned into a full-on laughing fit. It slowed, and she had to wipe tears away from her eyes. “I don’t mean to get sentimental, but Kasumi would love this.” She sighed, and checked her phone. “I have to get home.” She leaned over and gave Felicia headpats. “No more stealing, Felicia.”

Felicia mewed in response. They couldn’t decide if she was talking back or acknowledging being pet.

===

_ Wednesday, September 14, Lunchtime _

Keiko was excited to spend her lunch period in her new office/newsroom, which was still too small but it was also a definite upgrade over being stuck in the closet.

She anticipated meeting Makoto there but instead found Ren sitting at one of the desks staring at a blank screen. He jumped when Keiko said his name.

“Sorry,” he said. “I didn’t feel like being around people.”

Keiko raised an eyebrow. “You’re like the ultimate people person. What happened?”

Ren turned around, his lip quivering. “Morgana ran away.”

He spent the entire lunch period in tears while Keiko and Makoto did their best to cheer him up. They were eventually able to get his absence the rest of the day excused by Miss Kawakami after a quick explanation of what happened.

===

_ After School _

Keiko and Makoto cleared their schedule to search for Morgana. They ended up not having to look for long. Haru sat in the apartment building’s lobby with a familiar blue-eyed tuxedo cat in her lap.

“Mona!” Makoto said. “You’re safe!”

He mewed something back, and Makoto frowned. “I’m sorry, Morgana,” she sat next to Haru and started petting him. He mewed in protest, but quickly settled into enjoying the attention.

Keiko wished she knew what he was saying. 

“Nakano found him digging through our trash,” Haru said. “Could you call Ren? I imagine he’s worried sick.”

“Already on it,” Keiko said. She had her phone out as soon as she saw Morgana. “I told Ren to meet me upstairs.”

“I’ll have Nakano let him up.” Haru stood and Morgana scurried to the floor before climbing up to Makoto’s shoulder. Haru giggled. “Keiko, he’s moving in on your woman.”

“Nah,” Makoto laughed. “He prefers Ann.”

Morgana mewed angrily as they entered the elevator, and upturned his nose when Makoto asked him to calm down. 

“He’s a sassy little guy,” Haru said as they entered Keiko’s apartment. 

“You don’t know the half of it,” Makoto rolled her eyes.

Morgana jumped off Makoto’s shoulder and was immediately tackled by Felicia.

“Oh!” Haru said. “When did you get a cat?”

“Uh, yesterday,” Keiko shrugged. “She’s playful.”

“She’s hurting Morgana-” Makoto huffed. “Fine, she’s not hurting Morgana.”

“Can you understand him?” Haru looked at the two fighting cats with concern. 

“He’s just very easy to read,” Makoto rolled her eyes.

The cats finally calmed down, and Felicia returned to her spot on the couch, apparently burnt out of her pent up energy for the day from the brief spat. 

“I’m going to go check in on Dr. Takemi,” Haru said. “I was actually supposed to head there when I found Morgana.” 

Keiko nodded. “Thank you for finding him.”

By the time Ren made his appearance, Morgana was sitting on the couch right next to Felicia. They were taking turns grooming each other.

“I thought you weren’t a cat,” Makoto said, raising an eyebrow. She laughed at Morgana’s response.

“What’d he say?”

“He’s not accepting questions at this time, but he appreciates my concern,” Ren said, laughing along with Makoto. “I’m just so glad he’s okay.”

“Why’d he run away?”

Ren frowned. “I’d rather not talk about it. Morgana, are you ready to go?”

He mewed back.

“You can’t-” he interrupted Ren. “But I need you-” he huffed. “Fine. I’m willing to wait this out while you calm down. Or is this about your new friend?” Morgana hissed. “Okay! Fuck, fine.” Ren sighed. “I get it, Morgana. You’re not a cat. You win. Just keep sitting there grooming another cat and doing other extremely cat-like things. You’re really proving your point.” Morgana ignored him, and Ren turned to Keiko. “Can he, uh,” he gulped. “Can he stay here for a few days?

“What?” Keiko gasped. “Why?”

“He’s mad at me,” Ren leaned in and whispered the next part. “And I think he  _ likes _ your cat.”

“Hey, Makoto likes my cat, too.” 

Ren chortled, the joke cheering him up while Makoto looked at the both of them confused.

“What does that even mean?”

Ren was gone by the time she understood what Keiko meant.

About an hour later, Morgana revealed that Felicia understood the joke and thought it was very funny. 

“I’m being roasted by a cat,” Makoto said. “I’m honestly surprised this hasn’t happened sooner.”

“I’m more concerned that Morgana can translate for my cat,” Keiko said. Normally, she’d take this opportunity to join in the roasting. “Whoa! Can I interview my cat?”

Morgana mewed something, and Makoto rolled her eyes. “Morgana said he’s willing to help.” 

===

_ Thursday, September 15, Early Morning _

Keiko shook awake to loud thumping and angry cat noises coming from the living room. She tried to sneak out of bed, but realized Makoto was already awake. “Fucking cats,” Keiko huffed.

“Don’t let Morgana hear you say that.”

Keiko opened the door and Felicia bolted in, Morgana’s collar hanging out of her mouth. She perched herself on top of Keiko’s head. “What the fuck?”

‘Welcome to cat ownership,” Makoto chuckled. “This is precisely why Sae would never let us own a cat. They get very vindictive at 4 a.m. What happened, Mona?”

Keiko thought it was strange to hear such emotion in a cat’s meow, but he sounded genuinely hurt, like his humanity (catmanity?) was being questioned. 

“Morgana, she’s just playing with you,” Makoto said. “It’s her way of showing she likes you.”

Felicia purred, jumping down from Keiko’s shoulder and onto the bed. She circled for a minute before falling asleep with Morgana’s collar still in her mouth, right where Keiko had been sleeping. She was out in seconds.

“I guess I’m sharing my bed with the cat, then,” Keiko shrugged.

===

_ Evening _

“Just a minute!” Keiko yelled. She was exiting the shower. Makoto and the Phantom Thieves were investigating a new target, so she had to train with Sumire alone that afternoon. It was amazing how much better Sumire’s coordination was when she kept her glasses on. 

Keiko got dressed in pajamas. Felicia followed her to the door, where she let Haru in. 

Felicia greeted Haru first by headbutting her in the shin over and over again until she reached down and gave her head pats.

“You’re needy,” Haru bent down and picked up the cat. She looked tired. “You have a few minutes? I’m going to be staying in the safehouse tonight.”

“Did something happen?”

“We should sit down,” Haru said. Keiko led her over to the sitting area. Haru was kind enough to not take Felicia’s spot.

“Did something happen with Sugimura? Did he file charges?”   
“Oh, no,” Haru said. “He wouldn’t. He can’t have the world know he got beaten up by an old man, or by two young girls. I have something important to ask you.”

“Um, you’re making me nervous.” Felicia left her spot for a comfier one on Keiko’s lap. 

“Okay,” Haru said. “Sorry. It’s just-” she took a deep breath. “Did you know Morgana can talk?”

Keiko gave her an odd look. “Yes?”

“Oh, good,” Haru gave a sigh of relief. “Then you knew about Makoto being a Phantom Thief.”

“Yes,” Keiko said. “I knew about Makoto being a Phantom Thief. I knew before we started dating.”

“Thank god,” Haru chuckled. 

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you-”

“Don’t be,” Haru said. “I wouldn’t have told you unless I was reasonably sure you already knew.”

“Does this make you a Phantom Thief?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. “Like, you can understand Morgana.”

Haru nodded. “I’d like to join, if they’ll let me.”

Keiko frowned. “Does this mean no story about your dad?”

“We can race,” Haru grinned.

===

_ Friday, September 16, After School _

“Wow, Hikari,” Keiko flipped through a binder of samples Hikari had brought in for her to go through. “I know you said you could draw but this is actually incredible.”

Hikari was a tough girl from what Keiko knew, so seeing her blush at her art being complimented was a strange sight. Her art was heavily influenced by Shibuya, albeit a vibrant, colorful caricature of it that reminded Keiko of a comic book. She thanked Keiko.

“These look like something out of a visual novel. Have you created anything like that?” 

“Nothing with my own characters,” Hikari replied. “It’s just for fun when I’m not studying.”

“If you come up with some kind of story to it, I could dedicate half a page to it,” Keiko said. “We’ve never had a comics page come from our own students before, and we have more eyes on us than ever before. You could blow up from this.”

Hikari didn’t handle the shower of compliments well. She stammered through every sentence thereafter before excusing herself. “I’ll work through ideas.” She started towards the door then turned around. “Wait, I do have an idea. You know a lot about the Phantom Thieves, right?”

Keiko grinned. “I’m the expert.”

“We could create a fictionalized version of them, like recaps.”

“That’s brilliant, Hikari,” Keiko replied, and she meant it. “Go for it.”

“I’ll have the first strip to you Sunday,” Hikari said. She scrambled home, probably to work on more art.

“You’re enjoying this far too much,” Makoto said. 

“I like having strong content,” Keiko shrugged.

Makoto had been going over style with their three first-years and let them out for the day. Shinya turned in his first draft talking about the returning track, basketball, and soccer teams and it was an interesting experience for Makoto. They were nothing if not enthusiastic, although Shinya didn’t understand why AP style was so strict. He listened, though, and left promising that he’d get it right.

Keiko’s phone started buzzing, and she planned on ignoring it but Makoto found it annoying. She was working on an editorial addressing the student body and their return to school. “You going to get that?”

Keiko sighed. “I guess.” She dedicated her Thursday to making sure everything could go off without a hitch on Sunday. She’d be spending most of Saturday and Sunday showing Yuuki how to design pages. Getting page design off her plate would simplify her life to an extreme extent. “It’s Sae,” she said, answering the phone. “Hey.”

“Hey, you busy?” Sae sounded in a rush.

“A little bit,” Keiko said. “What’s up?”

“I need to meet with Dr. Takemi.”

Keiko winced and caught a look from Makoto. “Good luck with that, Sae-san.” 

“Look, I know you know where she’s at-”

“That’s quite an accusation,” Keiko replied.

“You’re not being accused of anything and neither is she,” Sae grumbled. “I got the cops off her case.”

“What? How?”

“They’re offering to close the case in exchange for the sample she took,” Sae said. “No questions asked.”

“That’s absolutely ridiculous.”

“I know about the sample, Keiko,” Sae said. “A witness pinned her at the scene. I personally think she’s innocent but this will be my case. I’ve burned a lot of capital trying to keep her off their radar and they’re starting to ask questions why this is so important to me.”

“It’s important to you because she obviously didn’t do it,” Keiko said. 

Sae didn’t respond.

Keiko sighed. “Come to my apartment tonight at 8. Tae will flee if she knows you’re coming.”

“Does she realize she looks guiltier running away?”

“She’s had run-ins with cops enough times to know it doesn’t matter if you’re innocent or guilty,” Keiko said. 

“I’ll meet you at 8,” Sae said. “Tell Makoto I said hi. She’s not speaking to me again.”

“I can’t say I blame her,” Keiko chuckled. “I kind of regret answering the phone. I feel like I’m selling out a friend.”

Makoto cleared her throat after Keiko disconnected the call. “Is Sae coming over for dinner?”

“I wasn’t really given a choice.”

“That’s fine,” Makoto smiled. “I haven’t seen Sis in too long. I should probably sleep at home tonight.”

===

_ Evening _

Felicia would  _ not _ shut up. She kept meowing and mewing to the point where Keiko wondered if she could talk, too. There was real emotion behind her mews. She missed Morgana, who had finally agreed to return to Ren.

“You’re clingy as shit, you know that?” Keiko looked down at the kitty. She was preparing the leftover beef again.

“She takes after you,” Makoto called from the couch. She was reading one of the books Keiko’s grandfather gave her, an American classic called “Player Piano.” It was one of Keiko’s favorites. 

“I didn’t ask for your judgment,” Keiko mocked being offended. “I miss Morgana, too, Felicia. We’ll have to set up a playdate-”

“Are you really setting up a playdate for your cat?” Makoto rolled her eyes. “Morgana would freak if he could hear you right now.”

A knock came at the door and Felicia growled before jumping on the counter. 

“Are cats supposed to growl?” Makoto chuckled. “Right there with you, Felicia.”

Keiko sighed and answered the door. “Hi, Sae.”

“Keiko,” Sae nodded. She took her shoes off at the door. “Makoto.” 

Then a flying Felicia jumped down from the top of the kitchen cabinet, right onto Sae’s head with an adorable roar. She luckily didn’t get her claws into Sae. She did, however, scare the living shit out of her.

Keiko and Makoto both laughed while Sae tried her hardest to maintain some form of composure and failed.

She tried to glare at the laughing girls, but she couldn’t hold it. Sae smiled. “I see you went and got a cat.”

“Her name’s Felicia,” Keiko said.

“That’s-” Sae sighed. “That’s fitting.”

“If she’s anything like her namesake, she probably doesn’t like cops,” Makoto laughed, then laughed even harder when Sae shouted about not being a cop.

‘I’m such a bad influence,’ Keiko thought to herself. “I’ll tell Dr. Takemi to head over.”

Dr. Takemi and Rio received a much friendlier greeting than Sae, and she had no problem taking up residence and Dr. Takemi’s lap after she inadvertently stole the cat’s spot. 

“So,” Keiko kind of wished Felicia would sit on her lap. Having a cat to pet might make this less awkward. ‘Or make me feel like a super-villain.’ “This is Makoto’s sister, Sae. She’s a prosecutor with the SID, and she asked for a-”

“What the fuck?” Dr. Takemi probably would have stormed off if Felicia let her. The cat instead nuzzled herself against the doctor’s stomach. 

Sae waved her off. “I come in peace. I’m the one who got your charges dropped.”

“There were fucking charges?”

Sae nodded solemnly. “They’re desperate to pin this on somebody.”

They sat in silence until Rio spoke up, leaning forward in her chair. “So, if you’re Mr. Good Guy cop, why didn’t you warn us sooner there were actual concrete charges?”

“What would have been the point of warning you if I didn’t have a plan? I’m of no use to anyone if I lose this job, and something like that would very much have cost me my job. Also, I’m not a cop!” Keiko and Makoto glanced at each other. Listening to Sae explain to strangers that she wasn’t a cop would never not be entertaining.

“That’s fair,” Rio said, nodding. 

“And do you have a plan?” Tae seemed more focused on rubbing Felicia’s belly. 

“They found out about the sample you took and they-”

“Nope,” Tae shot her down immediately. “It’s mine until I’m done with it.”

“When will you be done with it?”

Tae shrugged. “If the cops want it, I’m keeping it in my trophy case.”

“You don’t have a trophy case, Doc,” Rio shook her head.

“I’ll buy one,” Tae grumbled. “I’d rather be broke and incarcerated than help those complicit dickheads.”

Sae chewed her lip. “This is the only way I can get them to keep the charges dropped.”

“Who are they going to charge if they don’t charge me? A man still died,” Dr. Takemi said. 

“Well, the only other suspect is the Phantom Thieves-”

Rio nearly busted a gut. “Seriously? Are we just blaming them for every problem that pops up now?”

Sae winced and sighed. “It’s not funny. It’s a real problem that’s putting my career in jeopardy.”

“You really need to drop the career shit,” Dr. Takemi said. “You’re not the only one here who’s had their career destroyed by incompetent superiors. I’m  _ sorry _ they don’t work as hard as you, or play by the same ethics. It fucking blows. I can sympathize. You know how easy it would have been to just go along with their shit?”

“You don’t understand what’s-”

“Sis, you’re the only person who hasn’t had their life uprooted by all this,” Makoto said. “Keiko has provided actual evidence that the mental shutdowns connect to somebody within the police department, and so far your take-them-down-from-the-inside angle involves you doing every piece of their bidding with no questions asked.”

“That’s not my intention,” Sae said. She sounded frantic that the tables have turned. 

“You’d be at the office all hours of the day whether there were mental shutdowns or not,” Makoto said. “The mental shutdowns aren’t even the only problem. They’re just the biggest one. Why is a 99% prosecution rate necessary? Doesn’t that mean people are being brought in for a trial with the presumption of guilt?” 

“I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t prosecute-”

“Well, congratulations,” Makoto said. “Congratu-fucking-lations, because you’re doing a damn good job putting people away that didn’t even break the law. And now you’re here trying to interrogate someone you  _ know _ is innocent and blackmail them into giving up evidence?”

“Makoto, where is any of this even coming from?”

Makoto stood up. “If you’d even made an attempt to be around or get to know me, you’d know none of this is new.” Sae tried to interject, and Keiko thought about doing so herself, but Makoto wasn’t done. “The only reason you stopped freaking out on me at every turn is that I’m useful, or my girlfriend is. It probably doesn’t have much to do with me.” 

“Um, can I just say something?” Keiko interjected before things could get heated. She wanted to avoid a Niijima sister fistfight. 

Keiko looked around the room and noticed the desperate nods from Takemi and Rio. “Mako, I’m not going to disagree with everything you’re saying, but you need to look in the mirror. Sae’s in a frustrating position, and you’re being ignorant of how much danger she’s in. She’s being careful. You know who could afford to be more careful in the face of danger?”

Makoto’s face fell. “Me.”

Keiko frowned. ‘I made my point, at least.’ “Look, we know how your dad died. Would you be able to handle it if Sae went the same way because she tried to move faster?”

“I wouldn’t-”

“Look,” Rio interjected. “She’s got a point. I think we all agree that we want to get these motherfuckers, but we aren’t exactly well-equipped for this. We have, well, what? A doctor, a prosecutor, and a student newspaper? If we’re taking anyone down, it’s not going to happen tomorrow, or in a month. Now, somebody record that while I’m lucid because I’m sure this won’t last long.”

“So, should I give them the sample?” Dr. Takemi made a face. “I think I’ve been convinced-”

“Why don’t we give them a fake sample?” Keiko shrugged. “We need something black and tar-like. Like, what about that facial cleanse stuff?”

“What?” Makoto asked incredulously. 

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Sae said.

“I do,” Dr. Takemi said. “That shit is  _ so _ bad for your skin if you use it more than once.”

“Why don’t we give them a vial of that? They have no clue what your sample is supposed to look like, and it’s corrosive. They’re probably assuming the black tar is, too,” Keiko grinned. “You get off, nobody goes after the Phantom Thieves for something that obviously doesn’t involve them, and I continue in my journey to gaslight the police into submission.”

“I can’t believe you,” Makoto rolled her eyes. “Like, I actually can’t believe you.”

“I agree,” Sae said. “This is the best idea I’ve heard in a while.”

“Uh, I was calling it stupid,” Makoto said. She rubbed the back of her head. “It’s not necessarily a  _ bad _ idea, though.”

“It buys us time, at least,” Dr. Takemi said. “I can whip up a compound that’s similar but not exactly the same. That’ll buy us more time.”

“In the meantime,” Keiko turned to Rio. “I think I’m going to run that story on how the school mishandled your circumstances on Monday.”

“Did you just make that decision right now?” Rio raised an eyebrow.

Keiko shrugged. “I don’t want people mourning Kobayakawa.” She turned to Sae. “Can you get me an interview with Kamoshida? Something tells me he might be willing to share more information on the Principal. If anyone asks, I’d like to get a comment from him on Kobayakawa’s death for a news obituary since they were such good friends.”

Sae chewed her inner lip. “I can do that.”

“I have one more thing. Forward me Akechi’s phone number,” Keiko grinned. “I think he’s lost his right to privacy for a time.”

Keiko was shocked that everyone left in better spirits than they came in, although Sae was salty that Felicia tripped her on her way out the door. Keiko eventually went and laid on the couch and snuggled with Felicia while Makoto showered.

“You need to be nice to Sae,” Keiko said. Felicia mewed back like they were having a conversation. “I wish I knew what you were saying.”

She eventually pulled out her phone and sent a message to Futaba.

**Keiko:** Can you tap a phone for me?

**Alibaba:** Yup

**Keiko:** Even Akechi?

**Alibaba:** oof.

**Alibaba:** already tried. I’ll need access to the actual device. He’s got some encryption. I could break it, but he’d know somebody broke it too easily.

**Keiko:** Poop.

**Alibaba:** Ren might be able to help. I’ll let you know next time they hang out.

**Keiko:** they hang out?

**Alibaba:** A couple times a week. I think it’s a know-your-enemy type thing

**Alibaba:** but Akechi is simping HARD 

**Alibaba:** I’m half convinced he’d be less evil if he just got laid

**Keiko:** ultimately I’m the bad guy because i didn’t sleep with him

**Alibaba:** tbh that might be true

**Alibaba:** I can’t wait to share his porn history with the world

===

_ Saturday, September 17, Morning _

Keiko woke to her phone buzzing, and it wasn’t her alarm.

**Sae:** Have you seen my wallet? I think it fell out of my purse.

**Keiko:** Let me check

Keiko went into the living room where Felicia snoozed on the couch, a familiar collar in her mouth and something lumpy under her. Keiko groaned as she pulled the black leather wallet out from under the cat.

**Keiko:** Found it.

**Keiko:** Felicia had it.

**Sae:** Did your cat steal my wallet?

**Keiko:** I’m noticing a trend.

===

_ After School _

Yuuki Mishima picked up page design so quickly that he didn’t even need Keiko’s help. He had his first attempt finished before she even got out of class. 

“I brushed up on some things last night,” Yuuki said. “It’s fairly simple.”

He had the whole paper designed and there was only one story missing. 

“I kind of expected to have time to write this while you worked today,” Keiko said. “So, you might have to rearrange the pages tomorrow at the last minute.”

Yuuki shrugged. “As I said, it’s simple. That’s not a problem.” 

Keiko turned around to start writing, but Yuuki interrupted her after a bit.

“Hey, I don’t know if you’ve seen this,” he pulled up the Phantom Thieves’ website on his phone. “But somebody put in a request for you this morning.”

Keiko winced. “Who have I pissed off?”

“Honestly, that was my first thought. I don’t know you that well, but you don’t seem like a bad person or a criminal.” Yuuki shrugged. “I assumed it was an Akechi superfan making the request, so I deleted it and banned the IP.”

“Did you keep their details?”

“I did,” Yuuki said. “Already forwarded them to Ren. He’s asked me to watch for the names of anyone we know personally.”

“Thanks, Yuuki. You’re a lifesaver.”

She went right back to work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter and Chapter 25 are doozies and completely threw off my outline. I kept getting ideas for more interesting directions to take the story and now I'm trying to reconcile some things. Granted, this was so much fun.
> 
> Keiko has an actual news staff now! And a cat! And I didn't do a whole lot with Morgana being mad at the Phantom Thieves because frankly, it makes more sense that he's just having a mid-life crisis kind of thing than actually angry. Especially since Ryuji in this story isn't exactly the same as he is in canon. 
> 
> Felicia is stupid fun to write.


	25. Dragged Through the Mud

_ Monday, September 19, Morning _

**_Former Shujin student speaks out on Kamoshida, alleges ignorance from school administration_ **

_ Rio Fujinami’s parents both passed via suspicious circumstances within a year of each other; Fujinami alleges they died at the request of former Shujin Volleyball Coach Suguru Kamoshida. _

_ Fujinami left Shujin earlier this year when Shujin administration and police refused to hear her allegations for fear of what a Tokyo Metropolitan Police Captain referred to as “piling on.” _

_ Both of Fujinami’s parents were athletes: Her father, Hiroshi Fujinami, played on the gold medal-winning volleyball team with Kamoshida. _

_ Her mother, Reiko, was an athlete of a similar caliber. She was the favorite for the starting libero spot on the national team before her death of a supposed heart attack in 2014. The heart attack came the day after Kamoshida attempted to force himself on Rio, who was 12-years-old at the time. Her mother stepped in. _

_ Fujinami confirmed that her mother was indeed one of Kamoshida’s rape victims. _

_ “Did you know heart attacks make you bleed tar from your eyes?” Rio asked. “We were eating breakfast. Mom wanted to call the cops. Dad warned her not to. Within a few minutes of calling, she was gone.” _

_ The police confirmed that Kamoshida attempted to confess to ordering hits on both Reiko and Hiroshi, and admitted to future plans he had for girls on his team.  _

_ Rio said she’s aware of those plans. Kamoshida played a role in guaranteeing her scholarship into Shujin, which she was forced to accept because her father, still grieving her mother’s death, turned to alcohol to cope, and no longer had the money to send her to any other school. _

_ “I pled with my dad,” Rio said. “I’d go anywhere else. I’d sell myself in Shinjuku. I wanted to do anything besides get stuck in a school with that piece of shit. I hate him.” _

_ Kamoshida made his intentions known within days of Rio’s entrance into Shujin. _

_ “With a little bit of effort, you might be as good of a lay as your mother,” Rio said. “That’s what he told me after our first practice. If it weren’t for Suzui, I wouldn’t have made it out of that locker room.” _

_ Rio said when stories started coming out about Kamoshida’s abuses, she felt brave. _

_ “Getting everything you got out there while staying alive?” I thought maybe I’d be safe,” Rio said. “I thought that I could maybe come forward with what happened. I made a stupid decision.” _

_ Rio convinced her dad to come forward on the same day the Phantom Thieves sent their calling card. He called the police, explained what happened to Reiko, and the police created a report.  _

_ Her father died the next day and Rio alleges he knew what was coming. As soon as he realized what he had done, he swung on her. _

_ “That motherf***er could throw a punch, that’s for sure,” Rio said. “I’m lucky he missed the front teeth, I guess. You ever choke on your own teeth? It’s not pleasant.” _

_ Rio said the bottoms of her teeth cut up her throat when she swallowed. _

_ “Anyway, my dad was a piece of shit,” Rio said. “He died the day after I filed the report and wouldn’t you know it? His eyes bled the same black substance my mother’s did. They had different causes of death, but at least a random brain aneurysm is plausible.” _

_ Rio said she ran off before her dad was officially pronounced dead. Dr. Tae Takemi, a friend she’d relied on previously, caught wind of what happened and sought her out.  _

_ Rio said she’d like to return to school but understands the situation the school is in currently. She’s hoping a change in administration can lead to a safer environment.  _

Keiko’s forehead still stung from the chalk Ushimuru flung at her. She got caught reading her morning’s paper. It had a lot of important news that day, especially since she ran  _ another _ story about the school ignoring Mr. Okina’s death. 

“Miss Miyahara, I understand you’d like to admire your handiwork dragging a dead man through the mud, but I have a class to teach,” the old teacher grumbled.

Somebody a seat to her right cleared their throat. “I mean, he did ignore multiple murders and multiple rapes. Sorry that I don’t feel bad Kobayakawa’s dead.” ‘Shiho, what the fuck are you doing?’

“Have you no respect for the dead?”

“Nope. I tried to join them, remember?” Shiho spat. “I lost a lot of respect when they rejected me.”

The room broke into murmurs from other students.

“I’ve never seen somebody be so insubordinate-”

Keiko stood up and grabbed Shiho’s arm, pulling her out of the classroom. “I’ll get her out of here before she gets herself expelled.” She didn’t wait for Ushimaru to answer. He made a “get” motion, kicking both girls out of his class.

“They won’t expel me-”

“Shiho, shut the fuck up.” Keiko had her at the door. She didn’t dare take Shiho to the newspaper office or the rooftop, or the gym, or- ‘News closet.’ Keiko hoped Shiho didn’t have any bad memories to associate with it. They walked down the hallway, with Keiko shushing Shiho every time she tried to talk.

She closed the door when they made it to the former newsroom. 

“Look, he was being a dick, and I-” she started to defend her behavior but Keiko interrupted her.

“You’re fine, Shiho. Thank you for sticking up for me.” Keiko leaned against the wall and motioned for Shiho to sit in the only chair left in the room. “We all need to be careful, and that includes you.”

“What?” Shiho raised an eyebrow and shrugged as if wondering why this would involve her.

“That story I put out this morning painted a  _ massive _ target on my back, and I have known associates. Remember that detective you distracted for us?”

“The  _ Death Note _ looking guy, right?”

“He’s not stupid. I’ve been seen out and about with you and Ann, and with Ren, and Makoto.” Keiko couldn’t stop herself from chewing her fingernails. She tried  _ so _ hard to break the habit. “If they don’t go after me, personally, they might go after my known associates, and you’re the  _ only _ one besides me who isn’t protected against their methods.”

“What do you mean? I’m basically a sitting duck?”

Keiko nodded. “We both are. Rio, too. And Yoshizawa, for that matter.”

“Ah.” Shiho frowned and looked into her lap. 

“I’m sorry, Shiho. I’ve been trying to avoid putting my friends in any sort of danger but I didn’t have another option for this story,” Keiko said. “I couldn’t sit on it much longer, because I know these people. They won’t let Kobayakawa’s death go to waste.”

She didn’t reply immediately. “Everything that has happened to me happened because people saw the bad around them and chose to ignore it out of convenience. If I’m in danger because somebody decided to be proactive, I’ll take that risk.”

“But I need you to be careful,” Keiko said. “Like, no speaking out in class, no starting shit. Please. You might not be worried about something happening to you, but I am. I could never live with myself.”

Keiko gave a thoughtful look and nodded. “Okay.”

“Besides, you have Ryuji now,” Keikmo grinned and Shiho’s cheeks blew up red. 

“Yeah…” Her voice trailed off and she tried to hide a small smile.

“Are you two going to give it a shot?”

“I want to,” Shiho shrugged. “We had a lot of fun on our first date.”

Keiko beamed. “That’s adorable! Where’d he take you?”

“Uh, we went to see-”   
A knock on the door interrupted them. Dr. Maruki didn’t wait for them to answer to come in. “I thought I’d find you here.”

“What’s up, Doc?” Shiho raised an eyebrow as he stood at the door. There wasn’t really enough room for three of them in the old newsroom.

The doctor rubbed the back of his head. “Ushimaru told me I could find you here.”

“So, he sends the school therapist after me like I’m crazy when he’s the one being an asshole?” Shiho huffed. “Cool.”

“Do either of you want to tell me what happened?”

Shiho spoke before Keiko could. “He accused my friend here of dragging our esteemed dead-as-a-doornail principal through the mud in his death. I took offense to that for reasons I’m sure you don’t need me to go into detail on.”

“I was just going to let it slide,” Keiko said. “But he really upset Shiho.”

“I see,” Maruki said. “Well, I’m here to tell you that neither of you is in any trouble, but Ushimaru would like to talk to both of you after school. I can sit in as a mediator of sorts if you’re both okay with that.”

“I don’t suppose he’s going to let us say no, so I guess we’ll be there,” Shiho said. 

“We really need to get to our next class,” Keiko said, trying to dismiss the doctor.

“Right,” Maruki said. “I have some business to attend to, as well. Have a good day, girls. I’ll see you after school.”

===

_ After School _

Keiko, Shiho, and Dr. Maruki stood before a sitting Ushimaru in the faculty office. Keiko couldn’t help but notice that Kawakami had stuck around to eavesdrop.

Ushimaru was doing his best intimidating glare, but it was nothing compared to what Keiko was used to. Shiho was nonplussed, deciding she’d like Keiko to take the lead. She told her as such beforehand. She felt she had no reason to explain herself to the teacher.

Keiko sighed. “If we can make this quick, Monday is for napping and my cat-”

“I don’t care about your cat,” Ushimaru grumbled. “I would like to know why-”

“But she’s adorable!” Keiko dug around her pocket for her phone. “Wanna see?”

“Keiko, just let him get this over with,” Shiho warned.

“I kind of want to see the cat-” Maruki stopped talking when Ushimaru cleared his throat.

Ushimaru continued his speech. “I would like to know why you feel it acceptable to speak to a teacher in that way.”

His request was directed at Keiko. She shrugged. “I actually didn’t say anything besides letting you know I was removing Shiho from a bad situation. If I were to have said what I was feeling, we wouldn’t be having this conversation right now because I would no longer be enrolled in this school.”

Ushimaru sat in silence. 

“I don’t agree with how you’re going about voicing your displeasure.”

“So I just have to sit here catching strays while you act like a smug, enabling asshole?”

“Keiko, we can do this without name-calling,” Maruki said. “Can you tell me what he said?”

“I was looking over my reporting from this morning in class, which I admit I shouldn’t have been doing. Shiho took offense to him saying I was dragging a dead man through the mud when that specific dead man knew of her circumstances and did everything he could to cover up the wrongs done to her.” It was a mouthful, and Keiko felt out of breath after finishing it. 

“You have no proof that happened,” Ushimaru said. “You can’t just say things like that without proof.”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “I’ll be waiting for a call from Kobayakawa’s lawyer. I do have proof. It comes in the form of the dozens of ‘no comments’ and ‘please stop running these stories’ I received while I was exposing this school for running a grooming operation.”

Ushimaru narrowed his eyes. “What do you know?”

“The same things you do, she just actually does something about it,” Shiho said, breaking her silence. “I find it so hard to believe  _ any _ of you think Kobayakawa is innocent in everything that’s happened here. Rapes? Murders? Him and Kamoshida were  _ close. _ You’re delusional if you think he wasn’t helping his  _ besty _ get away with fucking murder.”

“I will not be spoken to this-”

“What are you gonna do? Rat me out to Kobayakawa?” Shiho spat. 

“Um, girls, I think maybe we should step away to cool off and…” Maruki trailed off when he noticed Shiho was nearly in tears. “Or we should let this go for now.”

“You’re a lot of help, Doc,” Kawakami butt in with some sarcasm. “I’ll escort the girls out.” She pushed Keiko and Shiho out of the faculty office but turned back, telling the girls to wait for her. She closed the door and ripped Ushimaru a new one. Keiko heard every word.

“I can’t fucking believe you, Ushimaru-san. Can you possibly be any more dense? There’s not a single member of the staff  _ besides you _ willing to go to bat for Kobayakawa even now that he’s dead, and you still step in? And Takuto, what the fuck are you even doing? Are you licensed? If you’re licensed, I hope it expires soon, because I have zero faith in a counselor that stammers his way through a situation like this. I know you’re a clinical psychologist, Takuto, but good lord, if you were my therapist I’d be searching for a bottle every single night.” There was a pause. “Are you really going to cry? Suzui just had to confront somebody who was enabling her rapist and she didn’t cry.” Another pause, then a frustrated grunt came from Kawakami. “Leave it to Kobayakawa to hire a yuppie quack therapist instead of getting someone who doesn’t believe in the power of healing crystals. Ushimaru, sit back down. I’m not finished with you. Do you feel the need to embarrass your students in class? I’ve heard about the chalk. Did you know that’s considered corporal punishment in the classroom? Did you know that’s illegal? It is! I would know, considering I had to pass my certification exams post World War II. How common is it for you to just call somebody out because you don’t like them? Does it make you feel like a big man? Especially Keiko. You know, the only thing at this school that makes it look like we’re doing our job? Are you going to give Niijima a hard time for having good grades? Are you going to go after Takamaki for her modeling work?”

Keiko could hear Ushimaru shifting uncomfortably in his seat from outside the room.

“This school has very little going for it right now, and it’s because of men like you. God forbid we reward students for doing the right thing. God forbid we respect our students, especially the ones who actively make this school a better place. You should be ashamed of yourself.”

Keiko jumped when she opened the door. “Let’s go.”

Kawakami looked exhausted and furious. 

‘I’ve never had a teacher stick up for me like that,’ Keiko thought. She shared a look with Shiho, who must’ve been having a similar thought. ‘I should try and find a way to make her day better.’

They were at the school gate when Keiko broke the silence. “Want to meet my cat?”

“Yes,” Shiho said immediately. 

Kawakami sighed. “I really shouldn’t be hanging out with students-”

“Really, Becky?” Keiko grinned.

“Fine,” the teacher huffed. “Yes, I do want to meet your cat.” 

Keiko led the way to her apartment, the crowded trains not really allowing them to have real discussion or be near each other. Kawakami grumbled something when they got off Keiko’s Setagaya stop. “How’s a kid afford to live around here?”

“A very generous landlord,” Keiko said. Her apartment wasn’t far enough from the station for a long discussion on the topic. She greeted Nakano at the door. “Hey, Nakano, how’s it going?”

He grinned. “Miyahara-san, good to see you. Pick any more fights?”

“No-”

“That’s a lie,” Kawakami chuckled. 

“Hey, that was Shiho that picked the fight-”

“I’d argue Ushimaru was at-”

Nakano laughed. “Sorry. I didn’t intend to start an argument.”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “Now  _ you’re _ picking fights.”

Kawakami spoke up when they got onto the elevator. “Did you really pick a fight with somebody?”

“My landlord had an angry associate try to break in,” Keiko said. “I didn’t actually pick a fight. I just wouldn’t let him upstairs.”

Keiko turned the key in her door and let her two… ‘friends? Kind of? Shiho’s a friend.’ Friends, she decided, into her apartment. 

“This place is giant,” Kawakami looked around in awe. “And you have an actual view.” 

“Blondie’s parents are loaded and their place isn’t nearly as nice as this,” Shiho said. “More importantly though. Cat.”

Keiko walked around the living space searching for Felicia. “Where are you?” She wasn’t lying in her usual spot, and she didn’t greet them at the door. “Felicia!”

The black cat walked slowly out of Keiko’s bedroom with Morgana’s collar still hanging out of her mouth. She stretched her front paws forward and raised her behind. Felicia must’ve been sleeping, and she was intent to stay that way. She moved to the couch and laid there. The others joined her in the sitting area. 

“Why is she carrying a collar in her mouth?” Shiho raised an eyebrow.

“She stole Morgana’s collar when he stayed with us,” Keiko said, drawing a laugh from Shiho and a confused look from the teacher. “I think she’s got a crush.”

“How can you tell?” Kawakami looked at her incredulously.

“Because she is not a mopey cat, and she moped the whole day after he left.” Keiko smiled. “She felt much better after attacking Makoto’s sister.”

Shiho and Kawakami both shared a look, then looked at the sleepy cat. Keiko caught on.

“Don’t worry. The only person she’s done that to is Sae,” Keiko shrugged. “She probably caught on to how uncomfortable Sae makes Makoto sometimes.”

“Maybe she just got bad vibes,” Shiho said, reaching over. She poked Felicia’s belly, and Felicia batted her hand away playfully. “She doesn’t seem like an attack cat.”

“Nah, she’s a dirty rotten thief, though,” Keiko giggled. “She stole Sae’s wallet. I’ve noticed a few other things have gone missing, too.” Keiko spent too much time searching for a TV remote on Sunday. She found it next to a turd in the litter box. 

“Where’d you find her?” Kawakami asked. Felicia left her spot and jumped over Shiho to greet Kawakami. The teacher scratched her under the chin, and she settled on her lap.

“I was with a friend in Odaiba-”

“Kasumi, right?” Kawakami raised an eyebrow. “She’d mentioned during lunch that you were helping her with a project.”

“Ah, did she tell you about that?”

Kawakami nodded. “I asked.”

Keiko didn’t want to tell Kawakami about Sumire’s identity crisis. She didn’t know if Shiho knew either, but she assumed Shiho would be finding out eventually.

The silence would have been more awkward if Felicia wasn’t purring over and over again. Kawakami was very good at finding the spots the cat liked getting pets.

“So,” Kawakami said.

“So…” Shiho probably made things more awkward.

“I did some digging,” the teacher said. “One of my students is a bad influence.”

Keiko stuck her tongue out.

“Kasumi isn’t Kasumi, is she?” Kawakami raised an eyebrow. “Sumire Yoshizawa is registered as a Shujin student.”

Keiko and Shiho shared a look. Felicia purred again.

“And Kasumi Yoshizawa is dead.”

Keiko sighed. “If you two could not tell anyone, I’d appreciate it.”

“Hey, if pretending she’s her dead sister is her coping mechanism, it’s slightly less toxic than mine,” Shiho shrugged. “I’m not one to judge.”

Kawakami shook her head. “I’m not ratting anyone out. Somebody once got  _ extremely _ offended that I assumed they were a narc, and I took that to heart.”

“Really? Who?” Keiko grinned, and the teacher rolled her eyes.

“How did she get away with faking her identity for a whole semester?” Kawakami asked aloud, but the question didn’t feel directed at anyone in particular.

Keiko frowned. “I think you know the answer.”

“I hate this fucking school.” Kawakami frowned. Felicia rolled over onto her stomach and climbed up, nuzzling the teacher’s face.

“I always knew you were my favorite teacher,” Shiho grinned, then faltered. “Uh, no offense, but that bar is extremely low.”

===

_ Evening _

Shinsuke Kishi was Keiko’s favorite kind of idiot. Makoto was still on the fence.

“I don’t really know how to explain what happened.” Kishi rattled his ideas off to Keiko as Makoto tried to keep her eyeballs inside her head. “I have no problem admitting I was a terrible boss, but since that day I have been doing my best to make it up to my employees. The problems at Big Bang Burger come from higher in the food chain, pun intended, but that doesn’t excuse my behavior.”

“What changed?”

Kishi shrugged. “I woke up one morning and decided I wanted to be a better person.”

“Is that kind of change…” Keiko trailed off. “Typical?”

“What?” Kishi answered a question that wasn’t the one Keiko answered. ”Anyway, I decided our workers should organize and demand better treatment via unionization!”

He shouted this in the middle of a crowded park like he was making an official announcement. 

“We shall not yield. Fewer hours! Better pay! Better Benefits! We shall not yield! We shall overcome!” He gave a bashful look when he noticed others staring. 

“You’re enthusiastic, at least,” Keiko couldn’t hide a grin. “Can you be more specific with your demands?”

Kishi nodded. “I don’t think what we’re asking for is outrageous. Forty hour work weeks with paid overtime for full-time employees is the standard for every other business. I don’t know what makes Big Bang Burger so special that they can ride their full-timers so hard. And no more solo shifts.” Kishi sighed. “We’ve lost so many good young part-timers because we give them ten minutes of training then act confused when things look awful the next day when we come in. It’s really easy to say kids today don’t want to work, but I’ve been with Big Bang Burger for a  _ long  _ time. It was never like this when Okumura-san’s wife was around.”

“Have you met her?”

“She used to drop in every once in a while,” Kishi frowned. “I actually chased her out of my store fairly often for trying to convince the workers to unionize.”

Makoto snorted.

“Have you met her? It seems like you found that funny,” Kishi raised an eyebrow at Makoto.

“I’m friends with her daughter. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

“That’s good,” Kishi said. “I wish I’d have been kinder in those days. I think knowing that not all of the Okumura’s are against this will help strengthen our cause. Look, I can posture and bluster all I want, but the fact of the matter is that we cannot keep running these restaurants the way we are. I have a wife and kids, and I can barely afford their schooling even with both of us working. If I’m giving eight hours of every day to a business, usually more, don’t I deserve to be able to feed my kids more easily? Okumura lives in a palace. He makes record profits every quarter. He’s trying to jump into politics. Why should I struggle while the man I help enrich is wasting his time on vanity projects?”

Keiko nodded in agreement.

“And I know people might laugh, but working retail at a young age can build important skills for the kids that come in looking for their first job, or the college kids that need a part-time job for beer money, or even the salaryman that needs a second job for whatever reason. I thought that before I realized I was being a dickhead. That’s not really a stance I’ll accept opposition to. We’re preventing this job from having any utility to society by making it this weird late-Capitalist hellscape where nobody has the tools to succeed despite their employers having the resources available.”

Keiko was eventually able to get actual specifics out of Kishi, and none of it was unreasonable. She couldn’t imagine Okumura saying no to their demands.

He was furious when she called, though. Haru was able to get her in touch with Kunikazu, and when he discovered there were workers that wanted more money, he gasped and nearly fainted from what Keiko could hear over the phone. He refused to comment but claimed there would be a reckoning coming for those who stood in his way. Keiko sat down and wrote that story in one sitting in one night, and it read like the screen-play of a Kevin Smith movie. 

She’d never written about a conflict where both sides were so blustery and obnoxious.

===

_ Tuesday, September 20, Midnight _

Everything was mostly black and mostly red, and the walls had veins sprouting out of them reaching further down into the odd, abyss-like subway station. Keiko had been here before. 

She must’ve groaned something because a beanpole in black and navy pinstripes responded.

“You’d be dead by now if it were up to me.” He waited for a response that Keiko felt leave her mouth but she didn’t understand. “I had orders to keep you alive but after your little stunt today, they’ve given me free reign.” He let out a maniacal, evil cackle that shook Keiko to her core and held out his lightsaber. The ridged sword seemed more apt for ripping than cutting, and she felt herself shy away as he approached her. “I’m going to enjoy this.”

The stabbing pain she expected never came. She heard a girlish voice shout something- “Bastet,” or something along those lines. A large cat-like figure stood before him, about waist-height on Akechi. Keiko couldn’t figure out what made the cat feel familiar. It might’ve been the yellow collar and gold medallion it wore.

The cat clawed at the masked man’s face.

“What the fuck are you?” Akechi shouted, jabbing and missing at the cat. The cat slashed back with razor-sharp claws that dug through his mask.

“The ‘what’ is the obvious part, detective. Not asking ‘who?’” Keiko felt like she’d heard the voice  _ somewhere _ but she couldn’t place it. The cat dodged another jab. “You’re not very good at this detective thing.”

“You’re with the Phantom Thieves,” Akechi hissed, attempting to douse a flame on his costume.

“Still bad at the detective thing,” the cat sounded bored. “I’m a phantom thief in the literary sense. Don’t you read? If you knew how to read, you’d probably be less of a psycho-” the cat dodged a jab from a roaring Akechi. Keiko couldn’t explain  _ how _ he got lit on fire again, but he was quickly tucking tail and running away. “You never even let me finish my monologue! Don’t you want to hear more about justice? Oh, bother.”

Then Keiko felt a weight on her chest, and her eyes opened as she attempted to sit up. Felicia mewed, annoyed at being removed from her comfy rest atop Keiko.

Makoto stirred. “Wazzit.”

“Uh, what?” Keiko was struggling with comprehension.

“Something happen?” Makoto’s voice sounded dry.

“I think Akechi tried to kill me again,” Keiko said, leaving her bed and grabbing her phone. Felicia was meowing constantly, sounding extremely concerned. ‘It’s a shame nobody knows what the hell she’s saying.’

“I’ll tell you more in the morning,” Keiko sighed. “Try and get some sleep.” 

Keiko laid there trying to sleep, but she never could after these other-worldly encounters. Felicia didn’t fall back asleep, either, so she eventually got up and made coffee. 

===

_ Early Morning _

“You’re up early,” Makoto yawned, finding Keiko sitting on the couch petting Felicia and gripping her coffee for dear life. 

Keiko shrugged. “Yup. Almost died again.” She took a sip of her coffee. Felicia hadn’t left her lap since she sat down again. 

Makoto leaned against the hallway entrance. “Akechi?”

Keiko nodded. “He got chased off by this thing. It kind of looked like a cat.”

“What kind of cat?”

“Well, she was bipedal-”

“You sure it was a she?” Makoto interrupted.

Keiko shrugged. “It had a girlish voice, but I suppose Shimizu sounds like a man half the time and she’s definitely a girl.”

“It’s not her fault she has a deep voice,” Makoto admonished Keiko. “The cat, though. What color was it.”

“Black,” Keiko thought for a second. “She wore a white mask and a blue scarf. She had a yellow collar under it.”

“Are you sure the mask was white?” Makoto raised an eyebrow. “Because you’ve basically described Morgana.”

“Well, I can’t say that it’s  _ not _ Morgana,” Keiko shrugged. 

Makoto didn’t feel like arguing any further, given that Keiko had no clue what she was talking about when it came to that kind of thing.

===

_ Morning _

Felicia mewed. She refused to leave Keiko’s side the entire morning and started clawing at Makoto when she tried to get her to lay down. She kept trying to climb into Keiko’s bag. Eventually, Keiko shrugged and told Makoto it was fine because Ren brought Morgana to school every day, and pointed out that Ushimaru wouldn’t dare say anything to her today and that was the only teacher she was really worried about. Keiko approached a crowd at the school gate. 

‘Nothing good ever comes from a crowded school gate.’ Students circled an arguing couple outside the gate. Keiko’s jaw fell. Ren and Sumire were at the center, although Sumire had her hair up in a bright red bow, meaning she probably wasn’t feeling like herself.

“Senpai, I can’t believe you,” she said, her cheeks red, splotchy and tear-covered.

“Kasumi, it’s really not what it looks like-”

“What is it, then?” Kasumi shouted the words. She got in his face. “I just wake up one morning and you’re calling me by the wrong name? Then I check your phone and you have these lovey-dovey messages with someone else?”

“Kasumi, I’m not cheating!” Ren shouted. He was frustrated from what Keiko could tell. She was trying to piece things together. ‘He must’ve called her Sumire, and she demanded to see his phone.

“I can’t believe you, Senpai,” Kasumi sobbed. “She even shares a name with my sister. That’s so low.”

“Kasumi, if you’d just listen-”

Ren had the big red mark of a hand upside his cheek.

“I’m not allowing myself to be around somebody who would do something so terrible. Please, never talk to me again.”

“Oh, Sumire,” Keiko muttered to herself and shared a horrified glance with Makoto, who looked equally terrified of what she’d just seen. Keiko quickly dug through her bag and discovered Felicia was wearing the glasses Sumire had given her. She took them for herself. 

Makoto sighed. “Did you forget you take your contacts out again?”

Keiko shook her head and she put on the glasses and swore. She couldn’t see more than a few inches in front of her face.

“What are you doing?” Makoto looked at her incredulously, and Keiko handed her the glasses. 

“Try these on.”

“Fine,” Makoto said. “I don’t know what this will do but-” she stopped. “Why is it so foggy?”

“I don’t know,” Keiko frowned.

===

Sae  _ never _ texted while Keiko was in class, so she just had to look when she noticed her name come across the screen. Kawakami wouldn’t care, and given what Keiko had seen that morning, she was far beyond worrying about rules.

**Sae:** Akechi must’ve struck out last night.

**Sae attached a photo.**

It was a creepshot she took when he wasn’t looking. He had scratches all the way down his face, and the wound looked newly scabbed over.

**Keiko:** Holy shit

**Sae:** Crazy right?

**Keiko:** he tried to kill me again last night. I think

**Sae:** So that’s a battle scar?

**Keiko:** A cat saved me?

**Sae:** A cat.

**Keiko:** yes.

**Sae:** It makes as much sense as anything else that happens to you does.

**Sae:** damn it. It really does look like he got cut by a giant cat

**Sae:** I hate that this makes sense.

**Keiko:** woe is you, sorry I didn’t actually die, your life would be so much easier

**Sae:** Am I that self-centered?

**Keiko:** You’ve gotten better. But yes.

===

_ Lunchtime _

Keiko spent her lunch dumping copy into InDesign to make Yuuki’s life easier come Sunday design. She wrapped up her first story targeting Okumura’s abuse of his workers the night prior, which was supposed to allow her to move her usual Monday nap to Tuesday. Her plans changed when she saw Kasumi completely misunderstand Ren’s intentions this morning.

“Senpai.” 

Keiko jumped when Kasumi greeted her from the doorway. She spun around in her chair.

“Hey, Sumi-chan,” Keiko said, unable to hide her nerves.

“I take it you saw Ren and I’s break up this morning.” Her cheeks were still a little red and her eyes were still swollen. She might’ve been crying since.

“I did,” Keiko said, trying to hide the cat circling her feet under her desk. “I think you’re making a mistake.”

“Explain,” Kasumi said in a terse voice. 

Keiko knew to tread lightly. “I don’t think Ren cheated on you, and I think you’re going to feel extremely embarrassed when you leave school today.”

Kasumi shifted her stance a little. “Are you siding with Ren?” 

“I’m not siding with anybody,” Keiko said. “I’m siding with two of my best friends, who I believe are perfect for each other. I’m just trying to figure out a way to explain to you what’s going on.”

“You  _ knew?” _ Kasumi sounded angry. Keiko had never heard that before. “Are you serious?”

“Kasumi, you aren’t-”

“I thought you were my friend!” Her voice escalated. “You knew he wasn’t being loyal and you-”   
Keiko had had enough of being yelled at. “You aren’t Kasumi!”

She could’ve heard a pin drop. Felicia stopped fiddling with Keiko’s shoelaces.

“What did you say?” Kasumi folded her arms.

“You’re-” Keiko paused. “You’re Sumire. I’m not friends with Kasumi. The person you think Ren is cheating on you with is your sister. You’re your sister.”

“You can’t-” Kasumi whimpered. “That’s not true.”

“It is, Sumire,” Keiko said. “We’re currently trying to find out why you keep turning into-”

She shook at a knock on the door, and Felicia jumped to her guard.

“Hey, the bell rang a minute ago,” Dr. Maruki said. “I thought I’d find you two here-” The cat jumped at him with a his. He shook his leg with a squeal, Felicia’s claws digging into the material of his slacks.

Keiko had to grab Felicia, who only let go because Keiko pulled her so hard. “Sorry, Doc.”

He shook his head. “Cats always hate me, for some reason. Uh, I heard you guys from down the hall.”

“Sorry,” Keiko said. “We were just-”

“It’s my fault,” Kasumi said. “I was so quick to judge that things escalated.”

“Actually, Kasumi, if you’d like, I have some snacks,” Maruki said. “I heard about what happened this morning. Would you like to talk it through?”   
‘Don’t go with him,’ Keiko thought. Sumire wouldn’t want that. She didn’t stop her, though. Kasumi left with the doctor, Felicia hissing at him as he left. 

===

_ After School _

Keiko felt awful about tailing Kasumi as she left the school. She felt even worse tailing her all the way to the stadium in Odaiba. It hadn’t started as tailing.

Felicia scrambled out of her bag the second they made it past the school gate, sprinting after Kasumi but keeping her distance. “Felicia, you stupid kitty!” Keiko finally caught up to her and noticed Kasumi getting on the train to Odaiba, which was the opposite way she usually went.

Keiko sighed. “Fine, Felicia. You win.”

The cat mewed happily.

Keiko jumped into the car behind Kasumi so she wouldn’t have to hide her face. She was curious if she’d turn into Sumire at some point on the way, but she was definitely Kasumi when she left the train. Her eyes were still swollen and cheeks blotchy, and she kept her hair up in the red bow. Keiko again put the glasses on and noticed the familiar heavy fog. 

There were still men working when they made it to the construction site. Keiko cradled Felicia in her arms, and one of them noticed.

“Hey! You brought the cat back!” A man in an orange hard hat grinned and jumped down from the equipment he was running. He opened a spot in the fence. Kasumi was standing about 30 feet down and had just noticed Keiko.

“I did! I promised I would,” Keiko smiled. “I kept the name, too.”

“She really couldn’t be anything  _ besides _ Felicia,” the man said. “I named her.” 

“Nerd,” Keiko stuck her tongue out.

“Oh, sure, like somebody who gets the reference isn’t also a nerd.”

Keiko shrugged. “I was always more of a Kitty Pryde gal, myself.”   
The man raised an eyebrow. “Seriously? Not Gwen or MJ? Kitty Pryde?”

“Hey, I was going through a phase and-” Felicia took off through the opening in the fence.

“Damn it,” the man said and reached for a walkie talkie. “It’s break time, fellas. Felicia got loose again.”

“Copy that. Guard your lunches.”

“And your wallets,” another voice said. “Over.”

Keiko noticed Kasumi was no longer standing outside the fence. She watched a familiar red bow bob between corridors on the site. ‘What are you doing, Kasumi?’

They searched and searched and searched. Tana, the man Keiko met at the gate, said Felicia knew the site better than any of the workers. “She could be anywhere.” The other men helped as much as they could, but they had to usher Keiko out when their union-allotted break time was over. 

“I’ll give you a call when I find her-” Tana started to say when he noticed a red bow from behind a stack of materials.

“I got this, Tana,” Keiko said. “She’s a friend of mine. I was actually tailing her here.”

“Alright, kid,” Tana said. “I’m a bit insulted you weren’t just bringing Felicia for a visit.”

Keiko chuckled and walked over. “Come on, Kasumi,” she said, putting a hand on her friend’s shoulder. Kasumi was sobbing into Felicia’s fur while the cat tried desperately to escape her death grip.

And then the world flashed rainbow colors, and- well, Keiko had never seen such a gigantic building in her life.

A brushed silver steel skyscraper reached into the air. The front door was little more than an elevator, a fancy one. ‘Futuristic,’ Keiko thought. It was nothing like the construction site they were now on. 

Felicia was no longer beholden to Kasumi’s death grip. She stood about chest height next to Kasumi. She had a white mask and a blue scarf and wore Morgana’s yellow collar underneath it. 

“Fe-” Keiko stuttered. “Felicia?”

The cat frowned. “I suppose you aren’t going to buy a ‘no comment.’”

“Oh. I’m just going insane.” Keiko looked at Kasumi, who stared at both of them with great fear in her eyes. “Kasumi?”

She shook her head. “Sumire.”

“Oh. That’s one mystery solved, then.” Keiko tried to smile and failed. “Good job, Felicia.”

“Felicia,” Sumire looked at the bipedal cat-like figure. “That’s your cat.”

“I prefer not to be referred to as a pet,” Felicia said. “I am, however, a cat.”

“Hey, Keiko? You’re seeing this, too, right?”

“I am.” She took a step forward. “We need to check it out.”

“Absolutely not,” Felicia said. “This is dangerous-”

Sumire didn’t wait for her to finish and sprinted off to the elevator. “Last one there’s a rotten egg?” Keiko wasn’t far behind her.

“I-” Felicia ran after them. “I have no room to talk.”

Keiko’s eyes widened at the bright, sterile white museum-style room that greeted them when the elevator hit the first floor.

“This is insane,” she gasped. 

Sumire nodded and pointed up the stairs. “Up there. It looks like a display.”

“Let’s go check it out,” Keiko started up the stairs but Felicia pulled her back with a paw. 

“No. I’m not letting either of you go any further,” Felicia said, sniffing around the air. “We need to get out of here.”

“But I want to-”

“We can come back tomorrow,” Felicia said. “Or whenever. At this very second, we need to get out of here.”

“Fine,” Keiko said. “Sumire, let’s go.”

It was dark when they spawned back inside the construction site, and Felicia was a cat again.

“Makoto’s going to be wondering where we are,” Felicia said. “We should get back before she starts asking questions.”

She looked at the two wide-eyes glaring at her.

“What? Do I have something in my teeth?” She gnawed on one of her paws.

“You can talk,” Keiko said, her eyes still wide.

“We’ve established this. Now seriously, I don’t feel like listening to Makoto-”

“Right,” Keiko said. “Let’s go.” 

Sumire remained silent, but Keiko noticed something important. She was still Sumire, with her long hair down and glasses.

Makoto wasn’t around when they returned to Keiko’s apartment. 

“You can stay over if you want, Sumire,” Keiko said. “I know it’s getting late.”

“Thank you,” she replied. She took up a seat near Felicia on the couch. Cat or not, Felicia was a whore for pets. “Did I really break up with Ren-senpai today?”

Felicia interrupted before Keiko could answer. “Hey, if Ren’s on your guys’ shit-list now, does that mean Morgana’s off-limits or-”

“Not the time, kitty,” Keiko said, plopping herself down on the other side of the couch. “But yes, you, or rather, Kasumi broke up with Ren for cheating on her because she saw your texts with him.”

“God, I thought the days of her snooping on my text messages ended when she died,” Sumire frowned, then her cheeks drooped. “I can’t believe I broke up with him.”

“And embarrassed him in front of the whole school-”   
“Felicia!” Keiko facepalmed as Sumire broke into sobs.

“I c-can’t-” she stuttered. “I broke Senpai’s heart and-”

“Sumire,” Keiko said. “You can explain to him what happened. He probably already knows.”

Her cheeks blew up a deep red. “B-but!” She blubbered. “I can’t.”

“Don’t be stupid,” Keiko huffed. “He’ll drop everything to make you happy-”   
“And he already has so much on his plate!” Sumire said. “He can’t know about this- this- whatever it is.” She swallowed. “It’s best I handle this without his help.”

“You need all the help you can get,” Felicia huffed. “You  _ are _ talking to a cat.”

“A cat that doesn’t shut up,” Keiko reached over and tried to steal Felicia from Sumire.

“How dare you!” Felicia argued. “I have offered you sage advice many times.”

“I’ve only had you for a week.”

“And you’ve been ignoring my advice the entire time!”

“I couldn’t understand you until today,” Keiko raised an eyebrow.

“That’s probably for the best,” Felicia said, resting her head on Keiko’s lap. She turned it toward Sumire. “I shout encouragement while her and Makoto make love.”

“You’ve been  _ what?” _

Sumire was red from embarrassment and laughter.

The laughter eventually calmed down, and they sat mostly in silence. Felicia made sure to complain about the game show on TV.

“So, we need to figure out how much you know,” Keiko said, pulling the cat into her lap. “Do you know anything about the fog?”

“Uh, I thought that was her,” she lifted a paw in Sumire’s direction. “Isn’t it?”

“It might be,” Sumire frowned. “All signs point to it being me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I almost didn't post this chapter today because I'm behind. Why am I behind? I've played 30 hours of Civ in the last 3 days and I need to sleep in between games. That game is such a time suck. 
> 
> Why did I think I was capable of writing three separate story arcs at once? This is hard! But I am having a blast, so that's okay. Let me know what you think.


	26. Keiko Still Doesn't Get Her Nap

_ Wednesday, September 21, Early Morning _

Keiko woke up to find Sumire snuggled on the couch with a snoring Felicia. She had her nose in her phone, and she was wearing a goofy smile.

“Ren text you?”   
Sumire’s smile faded. “No. I had a text from dad asking if letting me sleep on your couch was a conflict of interest.”

Keiko furrowed her brow. “It’s not as big of one as me dating Makoto.”

“This isn’t anime. The student council president isn’t the most important person at the school to anyone except you,” Sumire said. She sighed. “That sounded really mean.”

“Agreed,” Keiko mumbled. “Are you going to talk to Ren today?”

“I have to, don’t I?” Sumire frowned and held Felicia tighter. “I know I said I couldn’t face him but-” she stammered. “I embarrassed him in front of the whole school.”

“We don’t even know if you’re going to be Sumire at school today.” Keiko tried to think of a way around that. “We could meet with him after school and explain what’s going on.”

“How do we explain-” she pointed down at the snoozing cat. 

Keiko shrugged. “There’s no way I’ll be able to hide that from Makoto.”

“What if it’s more than just us that can understand her?” Sumire frowned. 

“And I don’t trust her to stay quiet around Makoto regardless,” Keiko said. “I think we have to tell Makoto. And Ren.” 

“Why?” Sumire looked at Keiko expectantly.

“I-” Keiko sighed. “This isn’t my place to tell you. You and Ren need to have a talk.”

_ === _

_ Morning _

“Seriously, Felicia, if you’re going to do this, you  _ have  _ to stay in the newspaper office.” Keiko struggled to convince the cat that she would be okay hanging out in the newsroom. “I’ll even leave the window open so you can explore outside.”

“But Morgana gets to stay with Ren,” Felicia whined.

“Yeah, and it’s incredible he gets away with it,” Keiko said. “I’m not going to push my luck. Besides, you’ve got sticky paws.”

“You steal  _ one _ wallet and-”

“And a collar. And another wallet. And somebody’s lunch. And-”

“Fine! You’ve proven your point. I’ll stay here and relax like a good little kitty,” Felicia huffed. 

Keiko reached down and patted her on the head. “I’ll be back at lunchtime, okay?”

Felicia circled around the room looking for a comfortable spot before settling Keiko’s desk chair. “If you’re even a minute late, I’m tearing up every piece of paper I find. That includes your collection of love notes from Makoto.”

Keiko shifted her eyes around the room, then left, locking the door.

“Who were you talking to?” Dr. Maruki was leaving his office at the same time Keiko was leaving hers.

“Huh? Myself,” Keiko lied. “Saying things out loud helps me remember them later.”

“That makes sense,” the doctor said. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t meaning to pry. I just thought I heard somebody say something about stealing a wallet.”

“Uh, you definitely didn’t hear anything about that,” Keiko panicked. ‘Can he understand Felicia?’ “Sorry, Doc. I’d love to parse this more but I need to get to class.”

Her phone buzzed on the way to the classroom.

**Alibaba:** I can’t help but notice that you’re having very long conversations with your cat

**SendNews:** god damn it

**Alibaba:** Were you just going to not tell us?

**SendNews:** I wanted to tell Makoto first

**Alibaba:** Liar. Sumire asked you not to tell.

**Alibaba:** She doesn’t get to lie to us anymore. Ren might forgive her, but I won’t

===

_ After School _

“I can’t believe I let my Monday nap go all the way until Wednesday,” Keiko mumbled to the cat in her backpack.

“I can’t believe you schedule out naptime,” Felicia spoke through a yawn. “You couldn’t pay me to be a human. It sounds stressful.”

Keiko nearly punched the person who grabbed her shoulder but stopped when she realized it was somebody she’d punched before. 

“Hey, Sumire told me we should meet up at your place after school,” Ren said. He didn’t seem phased by Keiko almost swinging on him.

Keiko frowned. “Of course, she did.”

“Is that not okay?”

“It’s fine,” Keiko grumbled. “I just never got my Monday nap and now you people won’t leave me the fuck alone and I’m-” 

“Calm, Keiko,” Felicia said from her bag.

Keiko took a deep breath, and Morgana poked his head out of Ren’s bag.

“She’s really wound up today,” Morgana addressed the other cat, but his eyes widened when he noticed the recognition on Keiko’s face. She knew she didn’t hide it very well. “She can understand me.”

“What?” Ren looked at Keiko, then at Felicia, wide-eyed.

“Huh? I can’t-” Keiko frowned. “That’s what we need to talk to you about.”

“So, am I allowed to come over or not?”

“What part of nap time does nobody understand?” Keiko hadn’t necessarily meant to yell that. She felt bad when Ren winced. “Fuck. Fine. But we’re making this quick because I’m taking my nap whether we’re done or not.”

She shot a text to Makoto and Sumire telling them to meet at her apartment as soon as they could. Keiko received a thumbs up from each within seconds, and she sighed. “I guess we’re doing this.”

Keiko tried her best to ignore Ren on their trip back to her apartment. 

Morgana and Felicia did no such ignoring. Keiko and Ren shared looks as they drew nasty looks from fellow train riders at the two cats’ behavior. Keiko was just thankful she was the only person that could understand both sides.

“I know you took it!” Morgana must’ve said that a dozen times.

Felicia would shoot back. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. It’s not my fault you can’t keep track of your collar.”

It lasted the entire train ride. Keiko rubbed her temples when she got on the elevator and they were still arguing. Morgana bolted inside the second she opened the door. Felicia left it in her usual spot on the couch.

“I knew it!” Morgana cried. He held his paws against the back of the couch and held the collar in his mouth triumphantly. “Thief!”

“Takes one to know one!” Felicia shot back. She ran between Ren’s legs and tackled Morgana off his perch. 

Keiko couldn’t make out their words but Ren couldn’t hold his laughter the entire time. As far as she knew, he could only understand Morgana.

“Morgana,” Ren said. They stopped their fighting. “You’re a literal thief.”

“I am a gentleman,” Morgana said, catching his breath. Both cats sprawled on the couch. If she didn’t know any better, Keiko would’ve thought they were snuggling. And then Felicia batted at Morgana’s face, and Morgana started whining again and-

“I’m never going to get my nap,” Keiko grumbled, taking a seat next to the heap of cats. Ren took a spot in the rocking chair.

“I’m not saying you don’t deserve a break, but I can’t believe you would take a nap over a long-winded explanation of why you can understand your cat.” Ren was rocking back and forth in the chair. ‘He’ll soon be a victim,’ Keiko tried to hold a smile. She was still mad at him. 

“When you say it like that, I sound like a bad reporter.”

“Are you going to report on you being the only person who can understand your cat?”

Keiko shrugged. “Sumire can understand her.”

“Yeah, and she’s in the middle of an identity crisis. Everyone will think you’re both nuts.”

“Okay, mister fighting-shadows-in-a-metaphysical-plane.” Keiko rolled her eyes. “Keep throwing stones from your glass house.”

“Hey, I  _ know _ I’m nuts,” Ren grinned. “I technically got slapped across the face by my girlfriend’s dead sister. Is that weirder than the shadow-fighting stuff?”

Keiko sighed. “It’ll be weirder when you have an extremely public breakup and then you’re both at school days later holding hands like nothing happened.”

Her phone buzzed with a text from Makoto letting her know both she and Sumire had arrived.

It was strange to see Sumire walk into a room and greet everyone except Ren. Sumire wasn’t typically a cool customer in the first place, but situating herself between Keiko and Makoto made Keiko groan. 

Makoto cleared her throat, insinuating they should switch spots. Sumire either didn’t catch on or didn’t care. 

Ren speaking first might’ve been Keiko’s saving grace because she had no idea how to explain what happened if Sumire wasn’t going to be cooperating.

“Sumire, I completely understand what happened and I am not angry with you.”

Sumire whimpered in her seat and looked for a shoulder to lean on. She found one with Makoto. ‘Stop acting like a mom, damn it,’ Keiko thought to herself. She struggled to concentrate.

Sumire mumbled something he couldn’t understand.

“What?” Keiko rolled her eyes because Ren grinned ear to ear. 

Sumire made an unintelligible noise and buried her face into the back of the couch and the back of Makoto’s shoulder.

“You’re going to have to face this eventually,” Makoto huffed. Keiko had to physically pull Sumire out from behind Makoto. Her face was red and splotchy. 

“I-” Sumire looked into her lap. “I’m so sorry.” Her voice came out as a croak. “I can’t believe I embarrassed you in front of the whole school like that.”

“Technically, Kasumi did,” Ren chuckled. “I’m over it, Sumire. I was a little upset at first, but nothing about what’s happening to you is normal.”

Sumire’s frown deepened. “It just got a lot less normal-”

“Let me go first,” Ren said. “I haven’t been honest with you, entirely.”

“You really  _ were _ cheating?” Sumire gasped.

“What?” Ren winced. “No! Why does everyone expect me to cheat?”

“Senpai,” Sumire rolled her eyes. “I’m as understanding as I can be but you’ve had women throwing themselves at you for months. And men.”

“That was one time,” Ren frowned. “And he’s actively trying to kill me, so he’s off-limits-”

“He’s not off-limits because you have a girlfriend?” Makoto raised an eyebrow. 

“Do I have a girlfriend?” Ren turned the question around at Sumire.

Sumire looked around the room no longer in tears, but her cheeks were still a bit red. “Um. Well, yes?”

“That’s convincing,” Keiko let out a small laugh. 

“As long as we clear the air, I’m willing to pretend this never happened,” Ren said. “I just want to know why Keiko can understand Morgana.”

“What?” Sumire stared at Keiko. “You mean, Morgana can talk, too?”

“Too?” Makoto glared at Keiko. “What the hell did I miss?”

“Uh, Felicia might have dragged us into a palace with her on accident-”   
“Okay.” Ren sighed. “What?”

“Felicia might have-”

“It’s rhetorical,” Makoto said, looking over at Ren. She settled her eyes on the cat. “Explain.”

“I was scared, okay? Sumire was squeezing me really hard and-” Morgana cut Felicia off, noticing Makoto’s confused, exasperated facial expression.

“She can’t understand you,” Morgana sighed. “That’s probably for the best.”

“Why can’t we understand her but we can understand you?” Makoto said, directing her question at Morgana. 

Morgana lept from the spot he shared with Felicia and stood on the coffee table. “This is a guess, but you’ve been in the Metaverse and you’ve seen me talk. You’ve told Keiko that I can talk. She’s been in the Metaverse, so her cognition says I can talk. You haven’t been to the Metaverse since you discovered Felicia can talk, so you can’t understand her yet. Keiko can understand me because she trusts Makoto when she says I can talk. Sumire can’t understand me because she didn’t know I could talk. And now, if you tell her, the next time she goes into the Metaverse, she’ll come back being able to understand me.”

Makoto tilted her head and gave Morgana a questioning glance. “You say that like there’ll be a next time.”

“Would you have stayed put after finding out about that world?”

“I would have-”

“He’s got a point, Mako,” Keiko said. “Wasn’t our original plan to find out what they were doing and start doing it ourselves?”

“Aww,” Felicia said. “We’d have met sooner.”

Makoto ignored Felicia’s involvement. “That was before either of us even knew what was going on-”

“What are you talking about?” Sumire looked on in concern. 

Keiko, Makoto and Ren all shared looks. The cats were more invested in batting paws at each other. Felicia had Morgana’s head held into the cushy armrest on the sofa. 

Ren coughed awkwardly. “I guess this is what we’re here for.”

“What?” Sumire frowned and looked at Keiko.

“I’m a Phantom Thief,” Ren said. “So is Makoto. And Ryuji, and Ann, and Yusuke, and Haru, and Morgana.”

Sumire’s eyes grew wide. “This entire time?”

Ren nodded. 

“You understand that we had to hide it, right?” Makoto pled. “Please don’t be mad at Ren-”

“Then how come Keiko knows?” Sumire shot back. “She gets to know but I don’t?”

Ren and Makoto both turned their attention toward Keiko. 

Felicia didn’t need to hear Keiko say she was nervous to know she needed comforting. 

“Makoto and I found out at the same time.” Keiko frowned. She gave Sumire a recap of the worst day of her life: Makoto, fresh off an argument with Sae, rushing off to confront Kaneshiro, the Thieves tailing her and saving her life even if she did come back with a three million yen debt on her head, and Keiko’s terrible date with Akechi.

“I understand you’re mad,” Keiko said. “But I swear, I only kept quiet because I promised I would. I couldn’t tell you. It wasn’t my place.”

They sat through an awkward silence. Felicia seemed to know better than Morgana when to stay quiet. Ren had to shoot Morgana multiple looks letting him know to to bother. 

Sumire looked like she might cry. She eventually did start crying.

“Sumire-” Ren started.

“Senpai, I will do whatever I can to help you.” Her voice came out raspy.

“What?” Two cats and three people echoed each other.

“Well,” Sumire gathered her thoughts. “I don’t think I’d have been okay with this before the summer. I was terrified of the Phantom Thieves at first.” Her eyes looked like they were apologizing to Ren. “But- well, I started spending lunch with Miss Kawakami every day and she’s  _ such _ a big fan. Like, I think she’s been inspired. I don’t even have to make her lunches anymore. I do anyway because she’s the second worst cook I’ve ever met.”

‘I’ve never been so proud of Becky,’ Keiko tried to hold a smile. 

“She’s right, though. There’s something majorly wrong at Shujin, and as far as I can tell, the Phantom Thieves are the only ones trying to do anything to fix it.” Then she grinned as a lightbulb went off. “Hey! I finally get why you all hate Akechi!”

“You probably don’t,” Keiko sighed. “There’s more to it than him just baselessly bashing them on TV.”

“Well, yeah,” Sumire shrugged. “He’s a detective. It makes sense he’d be going after a group calling themselves phantom thieves. And here I thought the only phantom thief I loved was Felicia.”

“I take offense to that,” Felicia purred, holding Morgana’s collar above his head now that she was no longer needed on Keiko’s lap. He reached back on his hind legs and almost got it, but she fled down the back of the couch. He gave chase. 

Keiko giggled. “She took offense to being called a phantom thief, then did something that a phantom thief would do.”

“Did she steal Morgana’s heart?” Ren grinned, then laughed when Morgana shouted in protest.

That was too much for Keiko, throwing her into a full-blown laughing fit. “I’m so glad I missed naptime for this.”

“We have one more important question to answer, though,” Ren said, breaking into Keiko’s laughter and the protests from the cats about why this wasn’t funny at all, actually. “Where did Felicia come from?”

“Well, when a mama kitty and a daddy kitty-”

“Felicia, he can’t understand you,” Keiko huffed. “Also, no.”

“Wait, I wanted to hear-”

Keiko shook her head. “Morgana, no. Just no.”

“God. This is so weird,” Ren looked on in confusion. “Is this what it’s like for everyone else?”

Keiko nodded. “Yeah. I thought you were just a weirdo who talked to your cat like he was a person.”

“I am a person!” Morgana argued, earning a bonk on the head from Felicia. 

“I guess this won’t work out between this then,” Felicia sighed in obvious sarcasm. “I could never date a person.”

Keiko and Sumire couldn’t hold more laughter while Makoto shook her head.

“I- I guess this answers the question of whether or not cats can blush,” Ren shrugged. “But not the question of where Felicia came from. Who names their cat Felicia in Japan? Like, Futaba maybe, but even that’s a stretch.”

“The foreman on that site in Odaiba is a giant nerd-”

“Hey, be nice to Tana,” Felicia said. “He’s basically my dad. Or my uncle? I don’t know. I’m loyal to whoever feeds me.”

“I have no idea what she’s saying,” Ren grumbled. “God, this is a pain in the ass.”

“Old man,” Keiko grinned. “Anyway, Felicia, where’d you come from? Seriously?” 

“I don’t remember,” she said, licking a paw. “I’ve been at the stadium since they started construction and before that, well I’m assuming I was too young to remember much.”

“But why can you talk?”

“Yeah,” Felicia sighed. “I’m as confused about that as you are. Then there’s the whole Persona thing-”

“Right,” Keiko said. “I don’t understand much about that. So, that was you that saved my life?”

“Who else would it be?” Felicia huffed, and lifted a paw in Makoto’s direction. “That slacker was too busy feeling you up to-”

“Alright, Felicia,” Keiko narrowed her eyes. “Be nice.”

“Hey, I’m not blaming her, but there’s a time and place for everything-” 

“On topic, please,” Keiko said.

“She really is your cat,” Ren chuckled. 

“Anyway,” Keiko sighed. “Akechi attacked me again. She showed up right as she was about to end it.”

“I lit that motherfucker on fire,” Felicia meowed cutely. 

Keiko laughed at the disparity between her tone and her words. “You did. Good job.”

“I still have no idea what she’s saying,” Ren whined, putting his hands in his face. “I’ve not been this frustrated in a long time.”

“Anyway, I’m pretty sure Felicia has a Persona, or whatever it is you call those things,” Keiko said. “Bastet?”

“Oh, wow. You really remember everything from that dream,” Felicia’s eyes grew wide. “That’s really weird. And traumatizing.”

“You have no idea,” Keiko frowned, but then she grinned at Sumire. “See? We have so much going on, it’s like we all forgot you slapped Ren across the face in front of the entire school!”

Sumire frowned. “That was mean. I mean, you’re right.”

“What about the palace you found?”

Keiko shrugged. “We have no way of getting back there without Felicia, and neither of us know anything more about it. It’s sterile and white, like a lab, but it’s massive, like a stadium.”

“Aren’t labs usually black-”

“That’s a type of dog,” Keiko rolled her eyes.

Felicia looked up at Keiko excitedly. “Can we get one?”

“What kind of cat wants a dog?” Sumire looked at Makoto and Ren, who were awkwardly trying to figure out what Felicia was saying. 

“I need somebody to antagonize when you’re at school.”

“Labs are bad city dogs,” Keiko said. “They need wide open spaces.”

“Buzzkill.”

They spent the rest of the afternoon filling Sumire in on everything she needed to be careful of, because it was a  _ lot, _ and then Ren begged her to stay out of the Metaverse because it was too dangerous.

And then she texted Keiko to ask if she wanted to investigate the palace at the stadium on Friday within seconds of leaving.

===

_ Evening _

It was no secret to Keiko that she had a tendency to fall asleep standing up in the shower. It was an impressive character flaw. It often explained why her showers ended up taking so long, although it disappointed Keiko that there was no dirty reason for it. 

Makoto caught Keiko’s eye coming down the hallway. She’d been wearing less clothing in their alone time ever since they had their first time. ‘She probably thinks she’s being subtle,’ Keiko mused. 

“Felicia really talks a lot,” Makoto bent down to scratch the kitty’s chin.

Felicia purred happily. “Keep scratching me like that and I’ll gladly never talk again.”

Keiko held a laugh. “At least you’ll be able to understand her sometime soon. I hope Morgana’s hypothesis was right.”

“He’s right more often than he’s wrong,” Makoto said. “If he wasn’t sure, he wouldn’t have told us.” Makoto had moved to the couch and Felicia followed, gladly accepting more pets.

“That’s good to know,” Keiko said. 

“Mmm,” Felicia purred. “Yeah, Morgana’s great.” 

Makoto rolled her eyes. “Where were you a couple weeks ago?” Keiko understood what Makoto was insinuating. If Morgana had somebody to gas him up, he might not have run off.

“Eating leftover bento out of a dumpster full of old nails, what about you?” Keiko laughed at the cat’s retort, and wished Makoto could have heard it.

Keiko was trying to think more about the day she found Felicia when she became aware of warm lips on her cheek, and then warm lips on her mouth and then-

Her mind was pretty blank at that point, but they were interrupted by Felicia.

“Not that I’m not enjoying this, but don’t you two have something important to discuss?”

Makoto noticed Keiko’s distraction. “Come on,” Makoto huffed. “Are you really picking now to get distracted by the cat?”

“Excuse you,” Felicia said, “I’m keeping you  _ on task.” _ She upturned her nose. “A real phantom thief saves pleasure for  _ after _ the job is done.”

“I feel like I’m being lectured,” Makoto shot a confused glance at Keiko.

“You are,” Keiko sighed. “But she’s right. I have something we need to talk about before we do anything else.”

“I’m never going to get used to this,” Makoto said. “Fine. What do we-”

“Sumire wants to explore the palace we found,” Keiko said. “If I don’t go with her, she’s going to go by herself. And if I go, we’re defenseless besides Felicia, and-”

“You’re going to ask me to escort you through a palace,” Makoto interrupted in a stern voice. 

Keiko gave an awkward smile. “Yes?”

“And you’re going to ask me to keep this a secret from Ren.”

“Uh, I’m not asking you to do that,” Keiko shrugged. “Sumire definitely is, though.”

“He would murder you and me and we’d both deserve it and we’re already going through a palace and-” She paused. “The answer is absolutely not, and I’ll talk to Ren about us all going with you. Let me sleep on it, though.” Makoto sighed. 

“I think post-nut clarity is a guys-only thing, babe,” Keiko grinned.

Felicia grumbled something about being forced to sleep on the couch again.

===

_ Friday, September 23, After School _

Keiko felt particularly stupid when she and Sumire left for the construction site and she had a text from Futaba before they even made it to the train station.

**Alibaba:** Take one more step towards Odaiba and the world discovers your furry hentai habit

**SendNews:** I don’t have a furry hentai habit. 

**Alibaba:** true

**Alibaba:** i can make it look like you do tho

**SendNews:** i feel like I’m far too trusting of you

**Alibaba:** that’s absolutely true

**Alibaba:** please just go do something normal

**Alibaba:** if you guys actually want in, I can badger Ren until he breaks down or something

**SendNews:** I’m trying to talk her out of it. It does sound fun tho

**Alibaba:** I’m really disappointed that u think this is fun

**Alibaba:** in case u forgot, it killed my mom, killed Rio’s parents and would have and still could kill you.

**SendNews:** Fuck me. I’m sorry

**Alibaba:** it’s fine. I get caught up, too. If something happens to you, we’re responsible. I know you’re curious and you want to explore, but please don’t. 

**SendNews:** I need to convince Sumire

**Alibaba:** good luck with that.

They were but a dozen steps from the station when Keiko stopped their forward progress. 

“Sumire, I don’t think we should do this,” Keiko frowned. 

Felicia gave a sigh of relief, but Sumire grunted in frustration. 

“But-”Sumire’s eyes watered. She’d been touchy all day, and Keiko expected this to bring some kind of argument. “I know it’s dangerous. I need to know what’s wrong with me.”

Keiko sighed. “Let’s go get coffee. We can figure it out, and maybe Futaba can tell you what she texted me.”

“I don’t want to talk to Futaba,” Sumire frowned. “She’s mad at me.”

“Well, you did eviscerate her favorite person in front of the entire school. It would be weird if she wasn’t mad at you.” Keiko scratched her chin in thought. “Honestly, you should be relieved that she’s being outward with her anger instead of sharing your porn history or sending everyone embarrassing pictures of you.”

Keiko’s phone buzzed. 

**Alibaba:** I was told no antagonizing Sumire.

She held out the phone to show Sumire the text message. 

Sumire sighed. “Do you ever think about how Futaba basically has the sword of Damocles over all of you?”

“All the time,” Keiko shrugged. “I lose sleep over it.”

They shifted gears, and took the train to Yongen. It was a walkable distance, but neither of them felt like feigning normal conversation for the 25 minutes it would take to get there.

LeBlanc’s bell chimed as Keiko pushed open the door. She didn’t get Sojiro’s familiar greeting. Instead they received a shout from an orange-haired gremlin sitting at the counter.

“The sign says we’re closed,” Futaba grumbled, sounding like a smaller, squeakier Sojiro. She eaked when Felicia climbed on her lap and started nudging under her chin. “Unless you’re here for Ren.”

“I’m not allowed to be here for you?” Keiko tried to offer a friendly smile, but Futaba just stared back.

“I’ll accept your friendship when you follow my demands,” Futaba said. She leaned her elbows on the counter and held her head up with her fists, looking down at Felicia, who climbed down after she discovered she wasn’t going to get any attention.

“We did,” Sumire said. “We’re both here.”

Futaba ignored Sumire. “Ren’s upstairs.” 

Keiko looked at Sumire and shrugged. They went upstairs to further avoid the awkward confrontation.

Futaba must have texted Ren in the time it took them to walk up the stairs. Makoto and Haru sat on Ren’s old couch while he took his desk chair. Somebody, probably Makoto, had drawn a map on the table.

“Making plans?”

Ren sighed. “This palace is a pain in the ass. Either of you know anything about airlocks?”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Keiko raised an eyebrow.

“See, this is why Futaba’s so upset,” Ren frowned. “Neither of you have any idea what you’re walking into.”

“I don’t need another lecture,” Sumire shot back. 

“Calm,” Felicia said, ramming her head into Sumire’s shin. “Nobody ever got anywhere yelling at each other.”

Keiko knelt down and patted Felicia’s head. “Smart kitty.”

“I don’t know how she deals with being treated that way,” Morgana huffed to Haru.

Felicia upturned her nose. “What? Are you  _ not _ a cat?”

“I’m just-”

“It’s a sore subject,” Keiko changed to scratching Felicia’s back. “Be nice.”

“It’s  _ so nice _ to just get pets,” Felicia taunted, and rolled over on her back.

Keiko stood up. “I’m not helping you bully Morgana.”

“Rude,” Felicia pouted. She didn’t sound all that upset.

It would have been nice to let the plight of the cats take over the conversation, but Ren and Sumire shared looks with each other that said they needed to talk. Again. 

Keiko couldn’t help but feel at least partially guilty for enabling Sumire. ‘I did talk her out of going, though. Don’t I deserve credit for that?” 

It would be best if they weren’t having that conversation in front of other people.

“Uh, hey, Mako, shouldn’t we go visit my mom?” ‘I’m so glad her acting has gotten better,’ Keiko thought as Makoto barely held a laugh in. “I haven’t visited in awhile.”

“Sure,” Makoto said. “Maybe she found more of those baby photos-”

“Oh! I need to see this!” Haru smiled a big, happy smile, and Keiko couldn’t tell if she was in on it or if she was genuinely excited. “Can I come?”

“Uh, sure,” Keiko shrugged. “Just warning you-”

“‘My mom is profoundly stupid,’” Haru said, interrupting her. “I remember you telling me that.”

“As long as you’re prepared, then,” Keiko said. She led the three of them, plus Felicia, to her own home. ‘’I hope I don’t regret this.’

They made the short walk to Keiko’s home, with nothing impeding their way. Normally, Keiko preferred it that way but she really didn’t feel like seeing her mother. 

She held her breath as she turned the key and unlocked the door. “Hello?”

“Somebody there?” Keiko could hear her mother call back. “That Keiko?”

“And some friends!”

“Gah! Let me put pants on!” 

‘Why aren’t you wearing pants? Why are you telling strangers you aren’t wearing pants?’ A thousand questions ran through Keiko’s head, and the most annoying thing to her was that she’d never get a good answer. She sighed. “Okay.” Then she addressed her friends. “Uh, just sit on the couch or something.” She froze. “Wait. Don’t sit on the couch-” she stammered. “Uh, I’ll grab you chairs.”

Haru looked concerned. “Is everything okay?”

Keiko sighed. “I don’t trust them to clean the furniture when they’re done.

“Done with what-”

“You don’t want to know,” Makoto chuckled. “And it looks like taking your pants off within seconds of getting home is a family tradition.”

“I took my pants off once!” Keiko argued. “It was a long day, and I was feeling confined, and-”

Makoto rolled her eyes. “I didn’t realize it was such a big deal.” 

“It’s not, Miss ‘bras are just too confining to wear when I’m not in public,’” Keiko mocked. “Which like, I’m not  _ complaining  _ about, but you could put an eye out with those-”

“Hey, Keiko,” her mom finally made it down the stairs, thankfully wearing pants. “And Makoto, good to see you again.” She ran her eyes over Haru. “Hey! I know you!”

“Oh?” Haru was obviously taken off guard. “I apologize, but I don’t believe we’ve met.”

“Mom, I swear if you say you knew her mom-”

“I did, though,” Aya shrugged. “I used to sell her weed. Reina is your mom, right?”

“You sold drugs?”

“Oh, hush,” Aya said. “It’s just weed. Goodness, my daughter’s a fucking square.” 

“My mom did drugs?” Haru looked horrified.

“Again, it’s just weed,” Aya rolled her eyes. “Although, technically I never sold your mom weed. She smoked for free as long as she brought ole Kuni around. Dude had no problem paying triple what I was charging.”

“That-” Haru sighed. “Sounds like father.” 

“This seems like a good time to remind you that my sister is a literal prosecutor,” Makoto raised an eyebrow.

“So? Your dad’s a cop and your mom used to smoke with me.”

“Mom, you’re dropping an awful lot of bombs on them right now, and considering you’re just meeting Haru, you should probably-”

“Oh, please. I bet she’s tough as nails,” Aya grinned. “This is crazy, though. I’m so sorry your loss wasn’t your father.”

“Mom!”

“Me too,” Haru frowned. “He’ll get what’s coming to him.”

Keiko and Makoto shared a look when Aya laughed out loud. “If you need a place to hide after you go through with your plan, I’ve got an extra bedroom.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Haru gave a friendly smile. “I didn’t realize my mother was allowed to have friends.”

“Yeah, Kuni regularly came around to steal her back whenever she accidentally had fun.” Aya sighed. “Men are trash.”

“You’ll get no disagreements from me,” Haru shrugged.

“Speaking of men, where’s your husband?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. She hadn’t heard much about the man since she walked in on him getting finger-blasted.

“Threw him out,” Aya said matter-of-factly, as if that was completely normal. “I was tired of being his beard.”

“Wait, did I actually get through to you on something?” Keiko looked at her mother in shock. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Aya shrugged. “He’s not your problem. I did a lot of thinking after you left and-” She winced. “Why is nobody sitting on the couch?”

“I uh,” Keiko shifted her eyes from left to right. “I didn’t know how clean it was.”

“Oh. That’s fair.” Aya chuckled. “It’s clean. I scrubbed the whole place after he left.”

“Hey, weren’t you going to introduce Felicia?” Haru noticed the cat’s absence.

“Yeah, actually,” Keiko said. “Where’d that little bugger go?”

She came down the stairs dragging a book behind her.

‘Dear god, no.’ Keiko knew that book. It was a big black binder full of photos dating back to her childhood and-

“What a good kitty!” Makoto gleamed. 

“I wasn’t about to forget about the baby pictures,” Felicia said, although only Keiko could hear her. 

“Wow! I didn’t even know where this was,” Aya said. “Where’d the cat come from?”

“That’s Felicia,” Keiko gave a bashful smile. “She’s a little shit.”

“You’re a little shit,” Felicia said. “We’re perfect for each other.”

“It doesn’t sound like she appreciates the name calling,” Aya said with a laugh. “Does that make her my grandchild?”

“Excuse you, Keiko and I are  _ partners.” _ Felicia’s meow must’ve been as indignant as her voice. “You’re like, my step-mom or something.”

Keiko laughed. “She doesn’t like being referred to as a pet. Also, make sure you still have your wallet before you leave. Felicia’s a thief.”

Aya chuckled. “I’ll keep that in mind, but she’s going to be really disappointed when she steals an empty wallet.” They all gathered around the coffee table to view the book the cat dragged in.

Keiko was more than a little embarrassed with the reactions her friends had to her mother’s scrapbooks, and she nearly passed out when they found her first press pass, which she’d made using construction paper and crayons as a baby.

It was the good kind of embarrassment, Keiko thought. It felt good to be embarrassed about something so minor. Seeing the joy in Makoto’s eyes helped.

===

_ Midnight _

Keiko couldn’t sleep. Felicia and Makoto had gone to bed hours ago, but something gnawed at her brain. It would be easier, she thought, if she knew what was actually bothering her.

Visiting her mom went shockingly well to the point where she actually felt comfortable being around her again. ‘She might not be any more of an adult, but she’s at least standing up for herself.’ It helped that Felicia  _ loved _ her and wouldn’t stop talking about her. Keiko didn’t have it in her to explain how strained their relationship had gotten, and Felicia hadn’t pieced together why Keiko was no longer living at home. 

‘Mom probably won’t be able to afford that place for long. Should I…’ Keiko didn’t dare finish the thought.

That wasn’t what was bothering her, though. It wasn’t the type of thought that would normally keep her up at night. 

She absent-mindedly fiddled with Kasumi’s glasses for a few minutes before fitting them on her face. The fog she’d see when she wore them at school may have been part of her problems. It was something she couldn’t solve. Her apartment wasn’t foggy, though. She looked back over towards the kitchen where the oven’s clock turned to midnight.

Keiko jumped when the TV flickered on and off. 

She jumped again when it turned itself on again to something playing in far lower quality than the usual high-definition picture. She could barely make out the silhouette of a thin young girl on the screen, her hair up in a ponytail and wrapped in a red ribbon, maybe. It might have been Kasumi, Keiko thought, but she couldn’t be positive. She pulled herself off the sofa and closer to the TV. The picture grew clearer as she creeped closer.

She touched her hand to the screen.

It passed through the glass like it didn’t exist.

And then she was pulled in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As somebody who is a strong believer in nap time, I feel so bad for Keiko right now. 
> 
> I can't believe how close to the end we're getting, but the problem is I keep adding chapters in the middle of things because I want things to add up and I don't want to just write point A to point B stuff. I still have Okumura, Sae and Shido to get through before I even end the story and that's just not something I can see ending in the next couple of weeks.
> 
> This story might end up hitting 250k words. Shit.


	27. Backside of the TV

_ Saturday, September 24, Midnight _

Keiko’s inner monologue often shifted to Makoto’s voice whenever she was in danger. That’s why it surprised her when she heard Sumire’s voice instead of her girlfriend’s.

“Tuck your head,” a timid voice in her head warned. So, Keiko did tuck her head. She clenched her eyes shut as she fell flat on her back. She had no interest in checking her surroundings. ‘I’m going to open my eyes and I’ll be on the couch. None of this ever happened, and I’m just having a nightmare.’

She took a deep breath and opened her eyes, noting the sky-high, steel grey ceiling and the gold ribbons flowing upward through an opening into the ether. A door opening startled her and she scrambled to her feet, finding a hiding spot behind a museum-like display of posters. The setup reminded her of her few experiences visiting universities, in particular, Tokyo University’s anthropology department. Her grandfather took her when they had an exhibit on the cultural implications of law enforcement. The exhibit was informative and laid a lot of groundwork for why Keiko didn’t want to follow in her grandfather’s footsteps as a detective.

Another deep breath and Keiko investigated the posters. They were not as in-depth as the ones at Tokyo University. Each poster had a stock photo, whether it be a person smiling or a design that might’ve been a pie chart. They each had variations of “Why can’t everyone just be happy?” in large font on them.

“When will the suffering end?”

“Why is life so hard?”

“When did things become so complicated?”

Keiko wanted to take it seriously. ‘Am I thankful because I know where I am, or terrified because I’ve been specifically told this place is dangerous?’ But it felt like she was reading a pre-teen’s diary during their emo phase. 

The footsteps came again, and Keiko jumped behind the wall of posters. A rail-thin black figure in a white lab coat looked to be on patrol. ‘What’s he watching for?’ She was unsettled by the lack of a face. He didn’t have eyes, a nose and a mouth. He had a swirl for a face that reminded Keiko of a Rohrschach test. 

He spoke. “We’re just trying to make a better world.”

She listened a little longer. He repeated those words ad nauseum as he patrolled the area. Keiko saw stairs to her left heading down, but there were more shadows patrolling that area from what she could see. She didn’t know what was beyond the door about 25 feet in front of her and decided she’d take her chances with the next room. Some of the shadows looked like they had tentacles and Keiko didn’t want to take a chance of a particular stereotype being true. 

‘I mean, the Metaverse is made up of the collective conscience, meaning if enough people think tentacles are for  _ that, _ they will be-’ she shuddered. ‘I’m not finishing that thought.’ 

Moving slowly might have worked better, but she sprinted across towards the door the second she was out of the shadow’s line of sight. 

The next room felt like a jump into the future from the previous, with blue holograms creating a partition before a stage. ‘No shadows,’ Keiko thought. That was good news. The bad news was this room was full of people. ‘Well, not quite people.’ There was nothing real looking about these people. They looked and felt like cardboard mannequins with old tape players stuck on a loop making up their voices.

“I’m so much happier!” A woman with a too-wide smile would say.

“I don’t even need to drink anymore!” A man with an eyepatch would say.

Keiko had never felt so unsettled. She noted a door to her left but she walked up to the stage where one of the cardboard mannequins looked like he was about to speak. He set himself apart by wearing glasses. She’d have stuck around longer if he had anything to say that didn’t sound like a bad Joel Osteen impression stuck on repeat. She ducked into the door to her left and found-

She immediately took cover behind a pillar. Several shadows prowled the room, which featured some chairs and a stage. She peered around the corner and saw a set of stairs leading up. ‘Up is definitely not the way I want to go,’ she told herself, but she knew going backward wasn’t the way out, either. ‘Maybe if I find a window I can hurl myself out of it and end this nightmare.’ She couldn’t help but think of Shiho and feel guilty. 

Keiko peeled away from her hiding spot and took the left-most path, ducking behind a chair and continuing her way towards the stairs. 

She reached the base and a siren went off. She felt the warm glow of a spotlight and every shadow in the room turned its head toward her. She took off as quickly as she could toward the door at the top of the stairs. It looked distorted, and in Keiko’s head, it looked like a way out. 

Each step felt like a mile as her leg muscles burned. Just a few months ago, she’d have been better off playing dead. The shadows closed in as she neared the top of the steps. She dove for the door handle, pulling it open.

Then a tentacle jutted at her ankle, wrapping it like a vice. She cried in pain. If something hadn’t broken, it would soon. She might’ve been better off playing dead.

“We’re trying to help-” the shadow’s words cut off when Keiko whirled her other foot around and clocked him in the part of his face that would be a jaw if he had one. “You’ll pay for that.” The grip let up and Keiko tried to stand. It was either a break or a severe sprain. She fell right back down.

The shadow closed in, its form disintegrating into the ground and rising back up in the form of a yellow, bug-like monster with huge black pincers and giant red eyes. 

It lunged forward, missing as Keiko rolled out of the way. She couldn’t get back to her feet without damaging her ankle further. The monster lunged again, and she rolled back.

“Hold still!” It shouted.

Keiko didn’t roll out of the way this time. She accepted her fate as time slowed and her life flashed before her eyes. ‘Sorry, guys. I didn’t mean to-’ 

**“I’m shocked it took you until now to look through this place, and you’re just giving up?”**

A giant burst of blue flame knocked the shadow back.

**“You’ve come so far. Frankly, these odds aren’t even the worst you’ve faced.”**

The voice in her head did have a point, Keiko thought. She’d survived so many encounters because of circumstances. ‘I’m finally in a situation I can control, and I just give up?’ Keiko shook her head. “You’re right.”

**“I’m what?”** The voice sounded smug.

“Things have been worse. I have control over this, and I need to face it.” ‘This would probably be a lot cooler if I yelled, but-’ Keiko didn’t feel like yelling. “I’ll just have to-” She reached for her face and found a heavy piece of plastic covering her eyes. She pulled, and pulled, and- “Hey, this shit kind of hurts.”

**“That is the point,”** the booming voice in her head then laughed a hearty laugh.  **“Throwing aside one’s qualms is never a simple feat.”**

The mask started to give. Keiko could feel blood running down her face as it took skin with it. “I’m going to do this,” she said, gritting her teeth with determination, pulling harder. 

**“Unleash me! We shall conquer more than just our visible foes!”**

“Come to me, Skadi!” The mask pulled away from her face, and a pitch-black figure draped in a gold and purple cape appeared behind her. “Bufudyne!”

**“Gladly,”** the Persona spoke back to her, then blasted ice at the oversized bug, knocking it over.  **“Not to be a bother, but you do have a sword.”**

“What?” Keiko looked down at her hip and noticed a giant blade with a short handle. She grabbed it and stabbed it into the bug like she’d been doing it all her life. She put the weapon back on her hip. “Why do I have a machete?”

**“We should take cover,”** Her Persona said. Keiko entered the door she nearly died trying to get to.

Inside was a couple of chairs, a table, and a sofa. ‘It seems safe here,’ Keiko thought. She wanted to talk more to Skadi. She had a million questions, and she searched her brain for a way to ask them. Skadi was there, but she wasn’t reachable. ‘Is this what Makoto meant? It’s like they’re always there, but they’re not always at the forefront.’ She sat on the couch. Then she laid down.

She wanted to take time to reflect on all that had happened that night but she fell asleep instead.

===

_ Morning _

Keiko coughed as the sun bled through her eyelids. She had sand in her mouth from lying face down in the dirt. She heard the beeping of equipment backing up in the distance and workers shouting greetings at each other over the sound of passing traffic. 

“Where the fuck-” she tried to sit up, but she couldn’t. Keiko was in a lot of pain. Her ankle was definitely sprained. She searched her pockets for her phone, which was nowhere to be found. 

“Hey, Tana, there’s a girl in here!”

“You sneak your old lady in here again?” Tana shouted back.

“I’m bein’ serious! She’s in rough shape!” 

Keiko heard multiple footsteps as construction workers surrounded her as the one who found her worked at wrapping something around her left ankle. It didn’t feel good. She tried to cover her face.

“Hey,” Tana said, kneeling next to her. He gave an incredulous look. “Keiko-chan?”

“Eh,” Keiko winced. “Hey, Tana. You don’t think you could get me to school-”   
“I can get you  _ home,” _ Tana said indignantly. “Jesus, kid. How long have you been out here?”

“I got-” Keiko held her tongue. “I don’t know. I don’t remember coming here.” ‘Como se dice, ‘I got sucked into the TV and now I have a Norse myth living in my head.’ Then she blinked. ‘Why did that come out in Spanish? Did I hit my head again?’

“ **Multiple times, dear,”** Skadi replied.  **“I’m pretty sure your foot is broken.”**

‘That’s not ideal,’ Keiko thought. 

“We’re going to get you home,” Tana said. “You have a phone?”

“I left it at home,” Keiko replied. A couple of the other workers helped her to her feet. “I don’t think I can stand without help.”

Tana turned and addressed the workers. “I’m going to get her home. Yano-san, you’re in charge until I get back. If anyone asks, my kid missed his train and he can’t miss another day at school.”

Nobody argued with him, and one of the men helped escort Keiko to Tana’s vehicle, an old pickup truck.

“Got an address?”

“2312 134th St. in Setagaya,” Keiko rattled off. “It’s a big apartment building.”

“Got it,” Tana said, typing the address into a GPS. 

Keiko leaned her head against the window and watched pedestrians as he drove her towards home.

“You’d have been lying there all weekend if we weren’t called in today,” Tana said. 

“Thank you, Tana,” Keiko said. “Seriously. All of you saved my life.”

“It’s no sweat. You’d be shocked how often we find people sleeping under the scaffolding when we get there in the morning,” Tana gave a friendly smile. “I wonder where those people will go when the stadium’s finished.”

“You guys don’t chase them out?”

Tana shrugged. “You know what they say, ‘Today you, tomorrow me.’ I don’t ask questions or punch down. If they’re passed out in a construction site, they have more to worry about than my judgment.”

Keiko nodded and eventually started to nod off. When she woke back up, Makoto and Nakano were pulling her out of Tana’s passenger seat.

“She busted her ankle up pretty good and I think she hit her head,” Tana said. “She’s lucky we were there.”

“Thank you, sir,” Makoto said. “I was worried sick.” 

“I’ll get more details, Niijima-san,” Nakano said. “Can you get her to her room?”

Makoto nodded and pulled Keiko’s arm around her. “Can you put any pressure on your left foot at all?”

“That’s a negative, Your Majesty,” Keiko grinned.

Makoto helped guide her on to the elevator, chastising her as she did. “You don’t get to do this right now. We’re getting you upstairs and getting you to bed.”

“You can’t miss school-”   
“I’m not,” Makoto said. “Somebody’s got to put together a newspaper, which I said I’d do if anything happened to you. Nakano will be up to check on you every so often, and you can explain what happened to Felicia.”

Felicia sat earnestly as Makoto opened the door into Keiko’s apartment. “I was worried sick,” the cat meowed and followed Makoto as she guided Keiko to her bed. “I woke up and you weren’t there, so the bed wasn’t as warm and I couldn’t get back to sleep because Makoto snores -”

“I’m glad you were worried about me, Felicia,” Keiko said. 

Things settled down after Makoto left for school. Felicia took to having Keiko home during the day nicely, scooting next to her while she slept. They were both snoring within a few minutes.

===

_ Afternoon _

Nakano came in with an ice pack several hours later.

“Makoto gave me her key,” he said. “I hope you don’t mind.”

“Of course not,” Keiko said, motioning towards her ankle, which was sticking out from under the blanket. “I’m a bit helpless.”

“Do you need help with anything?”

“I, uh-” Keiko stammered. “Is Dr. Takemi around?”

Nakano nodded and left the room, and there was a knock at the door minutes later. ‘I get it’s a courtesy thing, but I can’t exactly get out of my bed, so what’s the point of knocking?’

Takemi came in seconds after the knock. “Figured I’d give you a bit in case you weren’t ready for company.”

Keiko shrugged. “It’s not like I have anything else to do. Sorry, I smell like shit.”

“It’s no big deal,” Takemi said. “Half the time Ren comes to visit me he’s covered in blood.

“Sounds like him,” Keiko said. “If you need a chair, just grab one from the kitchen. I’d do it for you, but-” she gestured at her foot, “I’m out of commission for a bit.”

Felicia still snored at her side. ‘That cat can really sleep through anything.’

“Yeah, Makoto told me some of it this morning,” Takemi frowned. “Did you really run off?”

Keiko shook her head. “Did she really think I ran away?”

“She was trying to make sense of why she couldn’t find you.” Takemi came back with a chair but removed the ice pack on Keiko’s foot before she sat. Her ankle was bright purple and swollen. “Can you move it?”

“Sort of,” Keiko was able to rotate it slightly, but the pain was too much to do it for long.

Takemi sighed. “It’s not broken, so it’s probably just a bad sprain. How did this happen?”

‘It got crushed by a tentacle monster,’ Keiko kind of wanted to say it out loud just for Dr. Takemi’s reaction. “I don’t really remember,” she lied instead. “I remember something grabbing it. I fell, and everything after that is a blur. I woke up in Odaiba.”

“In the middle of a construction site,” Takemi said in confirmation. “Nakano told me.”

“I’m so lucky,” Keiko frowned. “If those guys hadn’t known me, I’d have been-” she choked on the last thought and coughed up some dirt.

“Well, let’s not dwell on that right now,” Takemi said. “I think the first thing we need to do is get you in the shower. You gonna need help?”

Keiko shook her head. “It’s only a few steps. I’ll be fine.” She tried to sit up and realized she couldn’t. “I might need help out of bed, though.”

Takemi laughed. It wasn’t that funny, but Keiko joined in, too.

Showering took longer than expected. She had dirt in places she didn’t know she could get dirt in, and that made things more complicated. Standing for that long on a bum ankle was exhausting. ‘I fell into the TV, right?’ Keiko tried to parse what happened that night. ‘I saw Kasumi on the screen and then something pulled me in. What pulled me in?’ Keiko tried to think. ‘Did something pull me in?’

Keiko couldn’t figure it out. ‘I should check the TV after Takemi leaves.’ She was able to get out of the shower and dry herself off, slipping into clean pajamas. 

Dr. Takemi wasn’t in the bedroom when Keiko exited the bathroom, so she limped to the living room where the doctor was sitting on the couch watching TV.

“Your phone went off,” She said, standing up to help Keiko to a spot on the couch. 

“It went off like, a million times,” Felicia peeled her head off of her spot on the couch and looked at Keiko. “I tried to read it but she wouldn’t let me.”

Takemi reached over and patted Felicia’s back. “She’s a talkative cat.”

“Talkative and clingy,” Keiko grinned. “Look at me, throwing stones from my glass house.”

“I’m not clingy,” Felicia grumbled. 

Takemi stood up and grabbed Keiko’s phone for her.

Keiko looked on in horror when she discovered how many missed messages she had.

**Makoto:** having trouble sleeping? I woke up and you weren’t there

**Makoto:** where the fuck did you go

**Makoto:** ...and I just found your phone

**Keiko:** Love you.

**Makoto:** Love you too. See you tonight.

‘Poor Mako,’ Keiko thought. Those messages came at 3 a.m. She’d undoubtedly been awake ever since then and she still went to school once she knew Keiko was safe. Makoto would have a long day ahead of her. 

**Ren:** Did something happen? I’ve never seen Makoto cry before.

**Keiko:** Yeah. I disappeared last night. It’s best if I explain what happened in person.

**Ren:** Sumire and I are staying late to help get the paper put together.

**Keiko:** you guys are the best

**Ren:** let’s hope you still think that Monday morning

‘If anyone can figure it out, it’s these guys,’ Keiko sighed. ‘Yuuki can probably handle the most difficult parts of the job.’

**Shinya:** hey boss lady, hope you feel better soon.

**Keiko:** thanks, Shinya. 

It was nice that the staff was thinking of her even when they didn’t know her that well. Shinya seemed like a good kid, if not a bit awkward. 

**Kaori:** Get well soon

**Keiko:** I intend to. Thanks Kaori

**Kaori:** Also, Makoto knows but I have an update from your story about Rio last week.

**Kaori:** She was re-admitted into Shujin. She starts Monday.

**Keiko:** Dude, thank you. You need her number? She’s a colorful interview.

**Kaori:** Already talked to her and Kawakami. Makoto’s going over the story as we speak.

**Keiko:** I’m excited to read it.

‘I’ve never been more proud,’ Keiko thought. Kaori picking things up so quickly was a real shock. 

**Hikari Shimizu attached 1 photo.**

**Hikari:** Here’s this week’s comic.

Keiko had a visceral reaction to the image. A man in a long black tailcoat with frizzy black hair swung through the school courtyard on a grappling hook, catching a falling black-haired girl that was undoubtedly Shiho Suzui. ‘It’s a shame we only print the front page in color. The color really makes this pop.’

**Keiko:** I love the cartoon. We should run this by Suzui first.

**Hikari:** She helped come up with the idea. I made sure she was okay with it.

**Keiko:** Alright. I’ll text Yuuki and tell him to get it on the front page.

**Hikari:** Whaaaaaaaaat

Keiko grinned, imagining Shimizu’s face when she got the text.

**Yuuki:** ...you’re still alive, right?

**Keiko:** I am. Thank you for your concern

**Yuuki:** thank god. I know your name was on the Phansite and I assumed the worst

**Keiko:** Nah. I’m good. Hey, can you get Shimizu’s cartoon on the front page? It’s great art if you’re short on content.

**Yuuki:** we aren’t short on content, but most of it doesn’t have great art. So I’ll figure it out.

**Keiko:** Thanks. 

Keiko swiped to the next string of messages. Mizuki got assigned a neighborhood association meeting for Aoyama, or more specifically, the neighborhood that surrounds the school. Stories rarely came out of it, but Keiko would sometimes get ideas for stories out of it.

**Mizuki:** Are these meetings always this boring?

**Keiko:** Yes. Anything noteworthy?

**Mizuki:** Not really. Somebody complained about a stray cat breaking into her house.

**Keiko:** What

Keiko looked down at Felicia, who had been reading over her shoulder.

“What a fucking narc,” Felicia complained. “I didn’t even find anything good.”

“Felicia, you  _ have _ to stop stealing shit.”

“That’s like asking me to stop breathing,” Felicia laid her head back down and swished her tail.

Takemi gave Keiko an odd look, then looked back at the TV.

**Haru:** Do I need to take care of somebody?

**Keiko:** do you mean, like, ‘take care of’ as in help me while I’m injured or ‘take care of’ as in murder somebody

**Haru:** Yes

**Keiko:** Haru

**Haru:** Well, technically I wouldn’t be doing the murdering.

**Keiko:** …

**Haru:** I’m just glad you’re safe.

‘I can never tell if she’s kidding,’ Keiko thought. She took a deep breath. ‘I wonder how Hifumi handles this?’

**Shiho:** just a warning, Ann and Ryuji are very gung ho about visiting you after school no matter what I say

**Shiho:** Are you okay?

**Keiko:** I am. I appreciate the warning. It’ll be good to have people around, I think.

**Shiho:** Okay. Yusuke will probably show up eventually, too.

**Keiko:** I’m apparently throwing a party then.

**Shiho:** Are you up to that?

**Keiko:** Honestly? Other than the ankle, I feel great. A little confused, maybe. You’ll understand better when you get here.

**Shiho:** Good. 

Keiko had been avoiding reading Sumire’s text messages. She didn’t know what to tell her or how to face her. ‘It’s not like I had any control over what happened,’ Keiko thought to herself. 

**Sumire:** hey, weird question. Did you just see Kasumi on TV? Dad thinks I’m nuts

**Sumire:** Sorry. I’ll let you sleep.

**Sumire:** Keiko, Ren just told me you’re at home. Are you okay?

**Keiko:** Sorry, Sumire. I did see Kasumi on TV last night

**Sumire:** Oh great. I’m not losing it.

**Keiko:** Shared delusions are a thing, tho

**Sumire:** Fair. Anyway, what happened?

**Keiko:** I’m telling everybody tonight. 

**Sumire:** Okay.

Keiko planned on taking the time to relax, and she did just that for a while. Takemi took her temperature and blood pressure with a little portable machine she’d brought with her and decided they were normal. She was satisfied Keiko didn’t have more than a mild concussion and a sprained ankle, so she left. 

“Ice the ankle every few hours,” Takemi said. “And stay off of it as much as you can. Nakano went to grab some crutches. I’m not giving you painkillers because it’s just a sprain. I have ibuprofen I can give you if the pain is too much, but ideally, just keep it wrapped and you’ll be up and moving in a couple weeks.”

“Thanks, Doc,” Keiko said. “I appreciate you making a housecall.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m bored as shit sitting here,” Takemi huffed as she left. 

“You ever find out when you can go back?”

Takemi shrugged. “Niijima told me it would be best to lay low until they find someone to pin Kobayakawa’s murder on. She doesn’t trust the cops to stick to their end of the bargain.”

Keiko raised an eyebrow. “Can you afford that?”

“Money’s not an issue,” Takemi frowned. “Your friend has made sure I’m well taken care of despite my protests.”

“Haru’s good for that,” Keiko said. 

“Yeah, she is. I would have argued more, but she convinced me it was more important to keep a clinic in Yongen open than it was for me to refuse money to massage my ego.”

“I hope I survive all this so I’m around when she’s running the country,” Keiko chuckled.

===

_ After School _

Keiko jumped as somebody knocked on the door. “Who’s there?”

“I bring crutches,” Nakano shouted back. “You have friends here, too.”

“It’s unlocked,” Keiko said, hoping she was being loud enough.

Felicia left her spot and climbed into Keiko’s lap. “For somebody who just had a brush with death, leaving the door unlocked was a stupid idea.”

Keiko shrugged. “You need a key to get on the elevator, anyway, and the only people on this floor are all my friends. The only thief I’m worried about is you.”

“I’m simultaneously flattered and insulted.”

Keiko turned around and greeted Haru and Hifumi from the couch. Haru must’ve taken the crutches from Nakano because he was nowhere in sight. 

“I hope it’s okay we stopped-”

“It’s not a problem at all. You know when the last time my job was to sit around and do nothing all day?”

“Yes,” Haru said. “Hawaii.”

“Yup, and I basically created work for myself every day I was there,” Keiko grinned. “I’m bored as shit.” She turned towards Hifumi. “Hey, Hifumi.”

“Keiko-chan,” Hifumi nodded. 

“Sit wherever,” Keiko said. “Can somebody grab me a drink first?”

“I could have gotten you a drink,” Felicia grumbled.

Haru came back over with a glass of water.

“Thanks. I’m not sure I’d be able to make the trip back on crutches,” Keiko said with a smile. Haru and Hifumi took spots next to Keiko on the couch.

Then they sat in an expectant awkward silence because Keiko didn’t feel like going into the whole story until everyone was there, and she especially wasn’t sure how much she wanted Hifumi to know.

“So, how’s, um, things?” Keiko didn’t try to hide how awkward she felt. In the span of 12 hours, she went from sneaking around some kind of Lovecraftian nightmare to laid up in her apartment trying to relate to other people. 

“I think it would be better if I asked you the same thing. How are you?”

“I’m fine,” Keiko said. “Last night was an ordeal, but I’d like to wait for everyone to get here to explain what happened.”

“Darn,” Haru frowned.

“So, you’ll have to settle for telling me how everything has been going with you two,” Keiko smiled. 

Haru sighed sarcastically. “I suppose I could do that. What do you want to know?”

“I don’t know,” Keiko shrugged. “Haven’t you gone on dates and stuff?”

“We can’t really be seen together in public,” Hifumi frowned. “That wasn’t something I thought about.”

Keiko caught Haru putting a hand on Hifumi’s lap. “That’s okay. I’m not allowed in public in the first place.”

Hifumi rolled her eyes. “Misery loves company, I guess. Mom’s just excited I’m friends with another celebrity.” She put air quotes around celebrity, probably insinuating herself. “All this attention because a pretty girl likes a nerd game is ridiculous.”

“So you can call yourself pretty but when  _ I _ do it you have to hide your face?” Haru made a sarcastic ‘pfft’ noise. “Hypocrite.”

Keiko stifled a laugh and looked down at Felicia. The cat was glaring at Hifumi.

“She’s got yarn.” Felicia sounded like a military sergeant. “I want it.”

Keiko couldn’t grab the cat fast enough and Hifumi squeaked as the cat batted playfully at the red charm in her hair.

“I want it!” Felicia shouted as Keiko tried to pull her away.

“I’m so sorry about that,” Keiko said, realizing she was standing, coming to grips with the severe pain shooting through her foot. She immediately fell backward onto the couch. “Motherfucker!”

Haru laughed and laughed as Hifumi tried to get her hair situated and Keiko angrily scolded Felicia.

“Bad kitty,” Keiko said. “You should know better.”

“But… yarn.” Felicia pouted. 

“I will get you yarn, Felicia,” Keiko huffed. “I didn’t know you were that kind of cat.”

“What kind of cat doesn’t like yarn?” Felicia exclaimed incredulously.

“You’re a brat.”

“You’re having quite the conversation with your cat,” Hifumi chuckled and looked at Haru, who was staring at Keiko suspiciously.

Keiko sighed. “She’s a good listener, and Makoto’s busy all the time because  _ somebody _ keeps monopolizing my girlfriend.”

Haru mockingly held a hand to her chest. “Why, I never in my life-”

“You sound like such an uptight rich girl right now,” Hifumi laughed. “Please,  _ please _ do that again. I need more of that in my life.”

Haru frowned. “Never.”

Keiko was able to stick to her guns of not telling the entire story until everyone got there thanks to Shiho, who had no problem pointing out that the last thing somebody who went through a traumatic event needed was an interrogation.

It didn’t take much guess-work to understand what she was insinuating.

‘I don’t think this is in the same vein, but I  _ did _ have my ankle smashed by a tentacle monster,’ Keiko thought. She felt like she was just waiting for the shock to wear off. She awaited the incoming 3 a.m. existential crisis with open arms.

Ryuji brought his Switch with him, which helped fill the dead time by reminding Keiko that she should stick to strategy games and shooters and she should never, ever try driving a car in real life. She didn’t understand the immeasurable guilt she felt making Yoshi run into the wall over and over again, and she didn’t care to explain it. It also brought about the first time Skadi made herself known to Keiko in the real world as she chastised Keiko for feeling so guilty about her mistreatment of a cartoon dinosaur.

“Remind me to never get in a car with you,” Felicia batted the controller out of Keiko’s hand.

“What, think you could do better?”

“And blow my cover? As if,” Felicia tried to use a paw to steer the car before realizing there wasn’t a race going on the screen.

“Ha! Is Felicia going to play with us?” Ryuji smiled widely at the cat’s poor attempt at driving.

Keiko facepalmed. “Don’t egg her on, she’ll probably chew up your controller.”

“If they didn’t want them getting chewed up, they wouldn’t make it the same color as my cat toys,” she protested. “I’m going to learn how to drive out of spite.”

Then Keiko noticed something wedged between the couch cushions, a piece of black leather with yellow outlines- “Felicia, did you steal Ryuji’s wallet?”

“What!?” Ryuji nearly fell out of his chair. “For real?”

“I prefer the term ‘commandeered,’” Felicia said, curling up in Keiko’s lap.

“No you don’t,” Keiko said, picking the cat up, holding her under her front legs, and staring her in her eyes. “We don’t steal from our friends.”

“But stealing is on the table, right?” 

Keiko huffed and set the cat down. “You’re a pain in the ass.”

“You really just have full-blown conversations with your cat, don’t you?” Ann raised an eyebrow. “It kind of reminds me of-”   
She was interrupted by Felicia jumping on her lap, pulling herself up to lick Ann’s face like an overzealous puppy.

“Oh, Lady Ann!” Felicia said in a mocking voice. “You’re so perfect and wonderful and beautiful.”

Then she climbed back down and stared at Ann. “I’m watching you, blondie.”

===

_ Evening _

Makoto and Ren looked exhausted when they came in with Futaba and Yusuke in tow. Makoto collapsed into what she thought was a free spot on the couch next to Keiko, nearly crushing Felicia.

“I’ll remember that,” the cat hissed. Then she perked up. “Where’s Morgana?”

Futaba, Sumire, and Ren pulled up kitchen chairs to the group as Morgana popped his head out of Ren’s bag. Yusuke seemed more comfortable sitting on the ground.

“You still have my collar,” Morgana looked in Felicia’s direction. “I refuse to associate with you until I have it back.” He perched himself on Ren’s shoulder before jumping down, journeying across the circle to settle on Haru’s lap. 

“Pssh,” Felicia said. “I don’t even  _ need _ your collar anymore.” 

She looked back and forth when she noticed everyone in the room staring at her.

“What?”

“Why does it seem like your cat is talking?” Yusuke gave Keiko a peculiar glance.

“Uh, well, that ties into why everyone’s here.” Keiko tried to hold a laugh at all the expectant glances she received. “So, I spent last night in the Metaverse, I think.”

Keiko evaluated the room, noting the furious glares from Futaba and Makoto and an analytic stare from Ren.

“I asked you to stay away,” Futaba frowned. 

“And I did, Futaba,” Keiko said. “I promise, I didn’t go searching for trouble.”

“You’d have taken me with you if you were looking for trouble,” Felicia said, drawing looks from everybody.

“Oh. Yeah. Felicia can talk.”

Ann rolled her eyes. “Yeah, that’s the world’s worst kept secret. She never shuts up.”

“Watch it, blondie, I’ll claw out those pretty eyes of yours,” Felicia mewed back.

“Oh, she didn’t like that at all,” Ann chuckled. “Sorry, kitty.”

“If you think you’re sorry now, just wait-”

“Felicia, stop being mean to Ann,” Keiko said. “You aren’t why we’re here.”

“Fine,” Felicia laid her head back down in Haru’s lap. 

“First things first,” Keiko said. “Hifumi, you might want earmuffs for all of this because honestly, if somebody told me just how much shit I’d be in when I started looking into all this, I’d probably have moved to Sapporo with my grandpa.”

“She can know,” Ren said. “Somebody took up all of my strategist’s free time so I had to look elsewhere.” Keiko couldn’t tell how serious he was being.

Makoto rolled her eyes. “That’s garbage, and you know it.”

“Yeah,” Ren grinned. “Even if I was being serious, you should all be taking your own well-being into account first. Seriously, before we get into this. If any of you are having second thoughts and want to back out, I understand.”

“What?” Keiko’s jaw dropped.

“You didn’t go into the Metaverse on your own. Every time we’ve gone, it’s because we wanted to go there,” Ren said. “If you’re being taken there against your wishes, it stands to reason that there’s somebody behind that. I’d like to think it’s Akechi, but this doesn’t feel like his MO.”

“Right,” Keiko nodded. “I get what you mean.” 

Judging from the looks around the room, it didn’t look like anyone wanted out.

“Shiho?” Keiko looked at her. “You typically don’t want to know what’s happening.”

Shiho shrugged. “Ann’s going to tell me whether I want to know or not, and if she doesn’t tell me, Ryuji will tell me accidentally for no reason.”

Ann looked offended but a glance from Shiho shut her up before she could say anything.

“I couldn’t sleep last night, so I moved to the couch so Makoto and Felicia wouldn’t get woken up by me tossing and turning. At midnight, the TV screen flickered on, but I didn’t turn it on. The screen was fuzzy, kind of like those old TVs when the antenna didn’t work right. Then a girl with red hair tied up in a red bow appeared on screen. I couldn’t tell what she was saying, but I’m almost positive it was Kasumi.”

“I saw it, too,” Sumire nodded. “It was definitely Kasumi. Or me pretending to be Kasumi.”

“So, I got up to check on the TV. I was pretty tired, so I could have been hallucinating.” She bit her lip. “I don’t know what made me try and touch the screen, but my hand went right through. Something hooked around it and pulled me into the TV.”

She was met with blank stares.

“That’s not how the Metaverse works,” Ren said. “We get there through an app.”

Keiko shrugged. “I don’t know how any of this works, I just know what happened to me. I got pulled into the TV and into the same palace Felicia took Sumire and I to in Odaiba.”

Everyone except Ren and Makoto looked at her in shock. “So, Ann, Felicia is like Morgana. I can understand her, and all of you will probably be able to understand her after your next trip into the Metaverse.”

“Wait, was your cat actually insulting me?” Ann’s eyes widened.

Keiko nodded. “She’s worried you’re encroaching on her territory-”

“I am not!”

“Quiet, jealous kitty,” Keiko giggled. 

“You’re taking all this quite well,” Makoto said.

“I’m just used to all this weird shit by now,” Keiko said. “I’m not even at the weird parts.”

Keiko explained the weird tentacle monsters and shadows that plagued the palace and the weird, cult-like obsession with happiness. She tried not to miss any details, and when she mentioned the distorted door, Morgana piped in.

“That’s a weakness in the distortion. Basically, you’re safe there.”

Keiko nodded. “I actually fell asleep in there after I uh, awoke? Is that the word you used?”

“What?” Makoto wasn’t the only one to say it, but she was the loudest. “You didn’t tell me?”

“I was too tired when I got back, and you needed to get to school,” Keiko said. “I didn’t want you to be distracted.”

“You’re ridiculous. My girlfriend up and disappears and you’re worried I might be distracted?” Makoto grunted in frustration. “I was already at maximum distraction!”

“You had a newspaper to put together!” Keiko argued. “That’s extremely stressful.”

Makoto gave a look, then nodded in agreement. “How did you ever do that alone?”

“I have a severe caffeine addiction, Mako,” Keiko sighed. “Anyway, I think I got everything out there that I wanted to. Any questions?”

“You can’t just say you have a Persona and not tell us what it is,” Ryuji complained. “That’s like, the coolest part.”

“Fair,” Keiko chuckled. “Good to see we’re past the horror. My persona is Skadi.”

“And that means-”

Futaba already had her phone out and the Wikipedia page open. “The Norse Snowshoe Goddess… blah blah blah. Why can’t they say this in fewer words? Goddess of skiing, the hunt, and winter.”

“So, what does that mean?” Ryuji looked to Ren.

“Well, it certainly breaks the motif,” Ren shrugged. “All of our Personas represent thieves.”

“Except mine,” Futaba said. “But mine represents a book that’s constantly getting stolen, so it’s kind of along the same lines.”

“But she said Felicia is like Morgana. Does that mean she has a Persona?” Ann asked.

Keiko nodded. “She does. Bastet, right?”

“Yes, she’s a war goddess,” Felicia said. 

Keiko relayed the information. “Another goddess.”

“So, a war goddess and a winter goddess…” Sumire trailed off, then chuckled and spoke in a deep and gravelly voice. Well, a voice that was meant to be deep and gravelly. “Winter is coming.”

Keiko gave a light chuckle, but nobody else understood the joke. “I  _ do _ get Targaryen vibes from Akechi.” ‘At least Sumire thinks I’m funny.’

“Does Akechi have siblings? We should be careful-”

“I’m still curious who the palace belonged to,” Ren said, cutting Sumire off before she started alleging Akechi was having an incestuous relationship with an unknown sibling. “But you don’t have an app. You don’t have a way of knowing.”

“Or getting back there,” Keiko frowned. “I, uh, tested the TV after Dr. Takemi left earlier.”

“That’s good,” Ren said. “I mean, it’s not good that you tested the TV.”

“That was incredibly stupid of you,” Makoto said. “What would you have done if you got pulled in again?”

“Died, probably,” Keiko deadpanned. “What person with a heartbeat wouldn’t be curious? Honestly, Mako. Come on.”

Makoto sighed. “Fine. I yield.”

“I think you’re all missing an important question,” Shiho said. “Keiko, are you okay?”

“Right,” Ren said. “This isn’t-” he looked at Ann and Ryuji. “This is the first time anyone has had to be alone after awakening, and that’s a fucking ordeal.” 

“I think I’m okay,” Keiko said. “I’ll know tonight when I try to sleep, I think. I’m still coming down from all the excitement.” ‘I’ll just ignore the occasional phantom feeling of a tentacle wrapping around my leg.’ There was a lot Keiko was ignoring: Random heart-rate spikes, shortness of breath, paranoia. She took a deep breath. “Okay, I’m probably not doing well. I don’t know if I was doing well before, though.”

“So, you have a Persona,” Haru said. “Does that mean you’re going to join us?”

“I promised Sumire I’d help her through her problem, and you guys have your own things to deal with right now,” Keiko said. “I’ll opt to keep my promise and join you after I figure it out. Plus, I still have a race to win.”

“Keiko-senpai, you don’t have to do that,” Sumire said through teary eyes. 

“I told you I would, so I am,” Keiko grinned. “I think I have a lead.”

Felicia mewed. “Yeah. That weird guy with the glasses.”

“Uh, my boyfriend is a weird guy with glasses,” Sumire frowned. 

“Hey!”

“It’s true, Senpai,” Sumire giggled. “But who else do we know that’s a weird guy with glasses?”

“Dr. Maruki. I’m pretty sure he can understand Felicia.”

Everyone looked at Keiko in horror. 

“What?” Keiko said. “Did I say something?”

Ren shook his head and looked around the room. “I’m choosing to trust Keiko on this.”

Everyone else nodded in agreement.

“What’s wrong?” Keiko raised an eyebrow at her friends.

Makoto sighed. “He might be the only adult at the school that we all trust.”

“Well,” Keiko tutted. “I think Becky should be insulted at your lack of faith.”

Ann’s bewilderment changed the subject. “Who the fuck is Becky?” 

“It’s Miss Kawa-” Ren jumped over and covered Keiko’s mouth with his hand. 

“Aw! Gross! She licked my hand!” He shouted, pulling it away.

“You shouldn’t have covered her mouth, then,” Makoto said. 

Ren responded by wiping his slimy hand on her face.

Keiko was laughing really hard until Makoto rubbed her wet cheek off on Keiko’s shirt.

Their night devolved into nonsense from there.

===

_ Sunday, September 25, Midnight _

Keiko and Makoto both jolted awake at the sound of a girl laughing on the TV. It had flickered on again, this time with a much clearer picture. They’d fallen asleep in each other’s arms on the couch after everyone left.

“I can’t believe you visited yesterday and didn’t come say hi!” A voice belonging to Kasumi Yoshizawa spoke through the screen. The girl on screen sure looked like Kasumi, with her red bow and red gymnastics leotard. “Some friend you are.” Her giant golden eyes glared through Keiko.

“Are you-” Keiko blinked the sleep away. “Are you talking to me?”

“I’m certainly not talking to your cat, Keiko-senpai.”

“What do you want from me?”

“You made me a promise,” Kasumi said. “You want to fix this? Here’s your chance. I  _ want _ to be Kasumi. You aren’t giving me a choice. Don’t you care what makes me happy?”

“You can be happy as Sumire,” Makoto leaned forward and clenched her fists. 

The shadow laughed. “Can I? I know what you’re thinking. You think I’m delusional. You think I’m crazy. I’m not.” She held her hands rigid at her sides and grit her teeth. “I’m not crazy. I was happy. I had friends, and a boyfriend. That dipshit had to rear her ugly head and ruin everything. Now all my friends think I’m nuts, and my boyfriend is only here because he pities me.”

“That’s not true-”

“I’m not sticking around to argue. You know where you can find me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't realize how much of a slow burn this story was until I went back and read the beginning of my other story where I sold the farm like eight times in the first 15 chapters. Looking back, I should have dragged things out more instead of shoving all of my ideas into one story.
> 
> Speaking of the other story, I should be back updating inside the next two weeks. Finishing this story is still my priority but I'm feeling less burnt out. I've been going back and updating chapters of it again so they make sense. I had some continuity errors that would bother anyone who reads closely. The ones in the first 10 or so chapters should be fixed. 
> 
> I love this chapter, but I don't know what else to say about it. I didn't keep the author's notes in my margin like I usually do, and if I just talk off the cuff about it I'll accidentally spoil chapter 28 and 29 and beyond because I'm too excited.


	28. Labor

_ Sunday, September 25, Midnight _

Makoto grit her teeth. “What do we do?”

“My brain says go back to bed, and we’ll burn this bridge in the morning.” Keiko couldn’t hold back another long yawn.

Makoto raised an eyebrow. “You mean cross this bridge.”

“Yeah,” Keiko grumbled. “That.”

“Do you think Sumire was watching that?” Makoto’s tone told Keiko she already knew the answer.

“She almost definitely was,” Keiko frowned. 

“She went into the TV.” Makoto’s red eyes met Keiko’s, so badly wanting her to say no, Sumire would never do something so stupid. 

“Yup.” 

Felicia marched out of the bedroom with a purpose. “I swear, the one night I get a break from your hanky panky and I-” she stopped. “Did I miss something?”

“Sumire went into the TV, we’re pretty sure,” Keiko said. 

“And you’re just going to run in after her? Bad ankle and all?”

“Probably.”

Felicia looked at both of them in a brief silence.

“Can I come?”

Keiko grinned. “We were planning on bringing you.”

“Dope,” Felicia said. “I bet you look like a character from Mad Max or something.”

“What?” Keiko shot the cat a bewildered look.   
“Everyone gets a costume in there, right?”

“Can you translate, please?”

“She wants to know what my costume looks like,” Keiko said, rolling her eyes. 

“I’m curious, too,” Makoto admitted. “We should get going.” 

Keiko warned them that there’s a bit of a drop once inside the TV. She shouldn’t have been surprised when both Felicia and Makoto had no problem landing on their feet while Keiko again had to roll out of it, which brought pain along with it. She fell right back down to her but.

“Ankle still hurts-” She paused when she noticed Makoto’s outfit. ‘Oh. This will be a problem.’ The skin-tight black leather and spikes fit her far too well. ‘I wonder how much that outfit would cost to recreate-’

“Yeah, I can hopefully heal it,” Makoto said. “Sit still.”

She didn’t have to tell Keiko twice, and she watched in awe as Makoto called for Johanna and a silver motorcycle appeared behind her. Makoto shouted a spell and Keiko was covered in a green light and all the pain in her foot disappeared.

It wasn’t until after she was healed and attempting to roll up a pant leg to get a better look at her ankle that she noticed her own outfit, thankful that her mask hid her embarrassment more than the outfit hid her modesty. Keiko tried to remember the last time she wore something tight. She kicked off a black combat boot and rolled up the pant leg of her new tight black pants. She rotated her foot a few times and felt no pain.

“We’re good to go,” Keiko said, slipping on her boot and standing back up. “Uh, eyes back in your head  _ Queen. _ I don’t like this any more than you do.” Her tight black sweater might’ve covered her torso, but it hid nothing. “Why do I look like a burglar? Why do I have a gun?” She looked down at the holstered pistol attached to the hip opposite her machete.

Makoto shook out of her daze. “Sorry.” Makoto gave her the once over again. “You look great.”

“Likewise-”

“I  _ just _ got done complaining about you two and your hanky panky,” Felicia had her paws on her hips. “Focus, please?”

“Oh.” Makoto winced. “You really do look like Morgana.”

“What did you think I’d look like, a bus?” Felicia shook her oversized head. “I get it, I look like the mascot for a fast-food chain.”

“We really should focus,” Keiko said. “We need code names?”

“It’s a good idea,” Makoto said. “I’m Queen.”

Keiko had to hold every joke that ran through her head because there was no site more terrifying than Makoto in her skin-tight steel-grey suit, complete with shoulder spikes. It brought another feeling that she was desperately trying to ignore. 

“I don’t have any good ideas for a nickname.”

“You could be Princess,” Felicia said, laughing.

“But that would mean Queen’s my mom.”

“We call you Oedipus,” Queen gave a small laugh. 

“I’d prefer my codename not have anything to do with my love of MILFs, thanks,” Keiko huffed.

Queen put a finger under her chin. “What about Nap?” 

“Oh, yes, let’s just meme you dickheads not letting me sleep into my codename,” Keiko said sarcastically.

“Nap it is, then,” Felicia said.

“It’s perfect,” Queen nodded. “Now we need one for Felicia.”

“Why would I need one?” Felicia sounded offended. “You’re the only ones that understand me.”

“It’s not a phase,  _ mom,” _ Nap mocked.

“That’s not even what I meant!” Felicia argued. 

“You need a code name because other people will hear me call you by name in the real world. If for whatever reason somebody recognizes it, we need something I know to call you here.” Nap explained.

“Right,” Felicia said. “What about Kitty? You call me that half the time anyway.”

“That’ll get on Morgana’s nerves so quickly,” Queen warned.

“Even better,” Kitty giggled. “Alright, enough wasting time. We’ve got a dumbass to save.”

The TV dumped them in the same room Nap found herself in last time, although there were no shadows to be found. 

“It wasn’t this quiet last time,” Nap mumbled. ‘Would have made sneaking around a lot easier,’ she thought to herself.

Queen grimaced and took in her surroundings. “What is this place?”

“Some sort of lab,” Kitty replied, leading them towards the door Nap regretted going through the last time. “The shadows wear lab coats, at least. I can never make it out of the lobby.”

“Have you ever gotten caught?” Queen’s eyes widened at the holograms and the plastic people, but she didn’t mention them. Nap knew better than anyone that she was freaking out on the inside, but Queen seemed less prone to freaking out here than she was in the real world.

“They don’t seem too interested in capturing me,” Kitty shrugged. “The shadows ignore me unless I attack them first. Then they’re shooting to kill.”

“They were definitely interested in me last time,” Nap said. The same man spoke to a fake crowd giving the same speech she had seen yesterday. She shuttered. “I don’t like it here.”

“We’ll be in and out,” Queen said. “As soon as we find Sumire.”

They entered the next room, the large lobby-like room where Nap got hurt. Last time, it swarmed with shadows. This time, only one shadow occupied the room’s lower level, and it didn’t have tentacles.

They took cover behind a white couch.

“Are you two ready?” 

Nap and Kitty nodded. 

Queen jumped out from behind the couch and grabbed the shadow’s mask, ripping it off. The shadow burst downward then back up, turning into the yellow, bug-like creature that nearly killed Nap. 

“This is a new one!” Queen said, taking a fighting stance. 

The oversized bug mistakenly shot fire at Kitty, who whisked it away with Bastet. “Not new to me.”

“That’s great. What’s it weak to?”

“Status ailments work.” Kitty then jabbed forward at the bug, her claws extending out of a glove and through the monster’s eyes. “Also, things typically don’t like getting stabbed and punched.”

Queen ground her teeth. Nap knew how much she hated going into anything without a plan. “I’ll keep track of what he’s weak to,” Queen said, summoning Johanna and firing a flashing blue light at the monster, who fell down immediately. “He’s down! Rush him!”

Nap and Kitty didn’t rush him fast enough.

“Come on! While he’s down!” She shouted again, frustrated at their lack of speed.

They eventually understood how Queen was used to working, though, and while the fight took forever, they left it largely unscathed.

“We’re lucky,” Queen said, hands on her knees while she attempted to catch her breath. “We got bailed out by its weaknesses.”

Nap gave her a confused look, but Kitty seemed to pick up on something Nap didn’t.

“If he’d landed a single hit on either of you, you’d probably be dead.” Kitty motioned towards the distorted door where Keiko sought refuge her first trip in. 

Nap crashed onto the couch while Queen and Kitty took seats around a table.

“That was just one fight,” Nap groaned. “I was tired before we even came here.”

Queen nodded. “I think we were too hasty.”

“So, we’re just letting your friend stay stuck here?”

“We don’t even know if she’s here,” Nap frowned. “We just assumed she would be.”

Queen put both hands on the table and twiddled her thumbs. She eventually shook her head. “No. She’s definitely here. You’ve both been here before, right? How many shadows are normally on patrol?”

“First room where we entered is usually two or three,” Kitty said. “Second room, between 12 and 15.”

“And we ran into one,” Queen frowned. “So the shadows that are normally on patrol are busy with something.”

“Or someone,” Nap said. She sat up and put both hands on her knees. “Were we really that outmatched?”

Queen nodded. “If we run into any other monster that isn’t weak to everything we’re inherently good at, we’re-” Nap knew the look of somebody trying to think of a better word. “We’re fucked. Basically, anything besides that giant bug thing is going to wreck us.”

“That’s reassuring,” Nap grinned. “I guess we’ll have to stick to the shadows-”

Queen tilted her head back and rolled her eyes. “I knew that was coming. God damn it.”

“Kitty thinks I’m funny,” Nap said, glancing over at Kitty, who was face-down on the table.

“I’m groaning, not laughing,” she huffed.

They exited the distorted room and moved on ahead. No other shadows bothered them until they reached a sparsely decorated landing. The door to their right had a giant deadbolt lock, so they had to the one to their left. Nap breathed a sigh of relief that the shadow standing at a small reception desk did little more than wish them a lovely day.

A black and grey and silver auditorium greeted them, swarming with giant pulsing shadows.

“I think we found-”

“I’m not Kasumi!” An apoplectic Sumire could be heard shouting at somebody. 

The shadows seemed to have their attention drawn there. The three rescuers snuck behind a row of seats on what looked to be the main stage. The auditorium was larger on the inside than it could have possibly been from the outside. ‘A stadium,’ Nap thought. 

“Look,” Queen said, breaking Nap out of her thoughts. “It’s her.” She wasn’t pointing at Sumire.

She pointed at a red-haired girl wearing a blue and white tie-dye leotard, her hair up in a bun, prepared for a gymnastics competition. Most striking were her shimmering golden eyes.

“Are you so desperate to see me dead that you ignore what you truly want?” Her voice bellowed unnaturally through the auditorium. 

Sumire’s voice wasn’t as audible, but they could pick up what she was saying. “It’s not-” she choked back a sob. “That’s not what I want!”

The shadow tilted its head towards the sky and howled with laughter. “Like you’ve ever known what you want! You’re a follower, little sis, and now that I’m gone, you’re going to spend every waking moment asking ‘What would Kasumi do?’”

“I won’t-”

“And that’s the only way you’re ever going to succeed.”

“You’re lying!” Sumire yelled through tears. 

“You’ll never achieve our dreams because you’re nothing but a failure, a talentless clutz who only succeeds when others take pity on you.” The shadow laughed again as Sumire fell to her knees. 

Nap could barely make out Sumire’s mumbling. “I’m not you.”

The shadow’s grin grew wider. “What’s that? You’re not me? Are you sure?”

“I’m not!” Sumire stood back up. “I’m not you, I’ll never be you, and I was stupid to ever try!”

The shadow floated in the air as its limbs lengthened and darkened into some kind of monster with blonde hair wrapped in a blue bow. Her skin shone a shimmering icy blue.

“I’m glad we can both agree that you’re stupid,” it laughed and laughed. “And now you finally get to join me where you belong!”

Two swords appeared in the air and converged on Sumire, and she shrieked as they nearly pierced her skull.

Nap hadn’t even noticed Queen vault over her hiding spot, past the guard shadows to shove herself between Sumire and the shadow. Queen shouted something like “Tetrakarn,” and the swords turned on the blonde beast, knocking her off her feet.

“Sumire, come on!” Queen grabbed her arm and dragged her toward their hiding spot. “Guys, run!”

Nap and Kitty didn’t need to be told twice, and they all sprinted towards the distorted door, past every shadow. They narrowly avoided more danger.

“Makoto-” Sumire’s words sounded strained. She gulped. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet,” Makoto said. She pulled out her phone. “I’m hoping I can get us out of here…”

Everyone in the room stared at her in a pregnant pause.

“Got it.” The world turned bright colors that darkened into a rainbow. Then everything was dark because all three of them were at the construction site in Odaiba. 

Keiko took a deep breath. 

Makoto took a deep breath.

Felicia nudged at an unconscious Sumire. “Wakey wakey,” she mewed.

“Huh?” Sumire’s voice sounded sleepy. “What are you guys doing here?” She sat up and looked around. “Why am I here?”

“You were in the Metaverse.” Makoto frowned. “We need to get back.”

“Who do we know with a car that we can trust?” Felicia mewed. “There’s no way we can walk all the way back to Setagaya from here.”

Keiko had her phone out. “It’s a tossup between Dr. Takemi and Makoto’s sister.”

“Dr. Takemi,” Makoto said without hesitation. 

Keiko nodded. “We can just tell her we were vandalizing or something.”

===

_ Early Morning _

It took Dr. Takemi a half hour to get there. They piled into her beat-up old sedan.

“Why the fuck were you in Odaiba?” She asked without greeting them. “Like, I’ve ended up in some weird spots after a bender but why do you always end up in a construction site in Odaiba of all places?”

“I-”

“Don’t answer,” Tae said. “The less I know, the better.”

She didn’t remain silent for long. 

“Do you know how lucky you are? It’s 3 a.m. on a Sunday morning!” She grunted. “What if I went out last night? Who would pick you up?” She gave Keiko an accusatoryl look.

Keiko winced. “It was a three-way no-win toss-up between you, my mom, Sojiro, and Makoto’s sister.”

“Do any of your friends drive?” Tae turned her attention more to the road.

“I have my license, but I don’t have a car,” Makoto said. “We could have called Haru.”

“No, we couldn’t have,” Keiko said. “She’d wake Ren up and he’s not going to handle any of this well.”

“What would Ren care? You’re big girls. You can apparently handle being alone in a construction site in the middle of the night,” Tae said sarcastically. 

Keiko sighed. “You just said you didn’t want to know.” She turned to Makoto, who took the back seat with Sumire. “Can you hand me her phone?”

“Why?” Makoto reached over and checked Sumire’s pajama pants pocket and pulled out an old Android phone similar to the one Keiko and her mom forced her grandpa to own because he refused to upgrade beyond a landline.

“We should text her dad, let him know she’ll be staying over.” Makoto tossed the phone over and Keiko input Sumire’s passcode. ‘Why do I know her passcode?’ Keiko thought to herself. Sumire was definitely the type of person to use her anniversary as a lock on her phone, Keiko remembered that day well enough to remember the specific date. 

**Sumire:** Hey, I’m staying at Keiko’s. Be back tomorrow.

**Dad:** What? When did you leave?

**Sumire:** …

**Sumire:** I snuck out

**Dad:** To be with a boy?   
****

**Sumire:** DAD

**Dad:** I was your age once

**Sumire:** I’m going back to sleep

“That went better than expected,” Keiko breathed a sigh of relief as Tae pulled into a parking garage attached to the apartment building, thankful that her acting skills translated to texting.

“Wait,” Tae said as Keiko made it a few steps away from the car. “Why aren’t you limping?” 

“Huh?” Keiko looked at Makoto, who shrugged. “Oh, I uh, was faking it.”

Tae shook her head. “No way. You have a severe sprain bordering on a break. You need to be off that ankle for the next month. How are you walking like nothing happened?”

Keiko shrugged. “You demanded to know as little as possible and if I’m being completely honest? I don’t really understand what happened either.”

Dr. Takemi sighed. “You’re giving me an explanation tomorrow. A real one with no bullshit. If I’m working with you, I need to know what I’m getting myself into.”

Makoto and Keiko had to carry a conked-out Sumire into the apartment. 

“If anyone asks, she drank too much,” Keiko chuckled as Dr. Takemi rolled her eyes. 

They laid Sumire down on the couch when they got upstairs. Dr. Takemi didn’t give much of a goodbye. In fact, she might’ve flipped them off as she turned the key to her door.

Keiko met Makoto’s eyes as they stood in the living area, wondering how to deal with the night’s events.

“We should tell Ren-”

Makoto immediately held a finger to her nose. “Nose goes.”

“Oh, you fucker,” Keiko’s eyes narrowed. “You’re lucky she’s asleep.”

Makoto grinned. “You have a text to send. I’m going to bed.”

“Hey, I’d do it if I had a phone,” Felicia said. “Can I sleep in your room tonight? You gave dumbass my bed.”

“You should be nicer to Sumire,” Keiko said. “She’s been through a lot tonight.”

“And she’d have gone through less if she didn’t go inside the TV.”

Keiko pulled out her phone and sent Ren a text.

**Keiko:** Hey, so your girlfriend went into the metaverse and Makoto and I had to save her. She’s fine and my ankle is better but there’s also a giant scary shadow that’s way stronger than you can possibly prepare for that tried to kill her and I’m pretty sure it’s going to try again. Goodnight!

**Ren:** Well.

**Ren:** now I know why she stopped answering my texts.

**Keiko:** She’s on my couch. We’re all trying to sleep. 

**Ren:** I’ll be by at noon

===

_ Morning _

Keiko’s nose woke her up before her alarm could. Makoto must’ve felt the same disturbance in the force because she started stirring at the same time.

“Do you smell bacon?” Makoto turned over and faced Keiko. Her hair was adorably messy. She left her headband in and it resituated itself in a weird spot, leaving Makoto with a lumpy hairstyle she’d be embarrassed over later. “What are you looking at?”

Keiko grinned and reached a hand out to tousle her hair. “You’re cute.”

“Ah!” Makoto squeaked and pushed Keiko’s hand away. “Don’t do that.”

Keiko reached out the hand Makoto didn’t bat away. “Do what?”

“I swear, your ankle won’t be the only thing that's broken,” Makoto narrowed her eyes.

Keiko batted her eyelashes and spoke in a purposely overly sweet voice. “What do you mean? You already fixed that.” Makoto’s cheeks burned and Keiko giggled. “I can’t believe that worked. You’re too easy sometimes, Mako.”

“You’re an ass,” Makoto pouted.

“Yes, Mako, I do smell bacon,” Keiko said, ignoring her girlfriend’s faux sadness. “I think Sumire might have woken up early and raided the fridge.”

Makoto peeled out of bed on the opposite side to use the bathroom. Keiko went the other direction, taking the opportunity to brush her teeth before joining Sumire and Felicia in the kitchen. 

“...so I told them, ‘I have to deal with your hanky panky every night and you two decide to-”

“Good morning,” Keiko said, interrupting Felicia whining at Sumire’s feet. Sumire looked like she was trying very hard not to laugh at the cat’s complaints. 

Felicia immediately straightened up her posture and stopped complaining. “Good morning.” 

“Good morning, Senpai,” Sumire said. She turned the heat down on the stove and turned around. She was a bit overzealous in her bowing. “I’m so sorry!” Sumire said. “I made a promise not to get involved and I didn’t keep it and I didn’t mean to but I didn’t realize how easy-”

“Sumire,” Keiko said, smiling. “You’re fine. I get it. We’ll have a talk with Ren and Makoto, and they’ll get it, too.”

Sumire stood up straight and smiled. “Thank you. I thought I could make breakfast as a way to make it up to you. I hope it’s okay. I used what was in the fridge.”

“I’m glad you did,” Keiko deadpanned. “It was going to spoil if nobody used it and god knows I wasn’t making it up in time to cook breakfast.”

Sumire chuckled and turned back around to the food.

“Come on, Felicia,” Keiko said. “I’ll get you some food, too.” She reached into the pantry and pulled out some dry cat food to put in the cat’s bowl, then filled the other bowl with water. 

Felicia munched happily. “Seriously, I don’t know why you guys don’t just eat this stuff. It’s a lot cheaper and it tastes better than that garbage I’ve been stealing out of lunches.”

Keiko chuckled. “I’m glad you like it but something tells me that cat food wouldn’t sit well with the rest of us.”

“Kasumi made me eat cat food once,” Sumire turned from the food. “It was unpleasant.”

“I mean this in the nicest way possible. Was your sister kind of a dick?”

Sumire nodded. “She liked playing jokes that only she would find funny. I should have known something was up when she offered to cook that morning.”

“Sounds like my mom,” Keiko mumbled. “Thank you for cooking breakfast, Sumire.” 

She’d returned to the table with two plates, then walked back for a third. Makoto exited Keiko’s room shortly after, her hair sitting in a more orderly state.

Makoto eyed Keiko as she sat down at the table, a plate already in front of her. 

“Is everything okay?” Sumire picked up on some tension in the air.

Keiko rolled her eyes. “I messed up her hair and called her cute. She’s still pouting.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Felicia said, looking up from her bowl. “People mess my hair up and call me cute all the time and it makes me so happy.”

“See, Mako? Felicia thinks you’re being ridiculous.” Keiko and Sumire both laughed at Makoto’s plight while she left the table to pour herself a cup of coffee.

Makoto still wore a frown when she returned to the table. She turned to Sumire. “Have you heard from anybody?”

Sumire pulled out her phone. “Dad thinks I snuck out to be with Ren.” She narrowed her eyes at Keiko. “Thanks for that.”

“I had to come up with  _ something,” _ Keiko shrugged.

“Ren was freaking out,” Sumire shifted gears. “He still seems freaked.”

Makoto took a bite of egg. “I think that’s understandable.”

Sumire shrugged. “This is twice in two days that somebody got pulled into the TV.”

“And we really need to get moving on Okumura,” Makoto said in between bites. “We don’t have time for a diversion and that shadow was way stronger than anything we’ve ever seen before.”

“Leave it to Kasumi to overdo it even as a shadow,” Sumire mumbled.

Makoto shook her head. “That wasn’t Kasumi. That was you.”

Sumire looked down at her bacon. She’d finished her eggs already.

“I know that’s uncomfortable to hear. I think that palace belongs to you.”

“But I’m not a bad person,” Sumire sniffled and her eyes started to water.

“You don’t have to be a bad person to have a shadow,” Makoto tried to use an encouraging voice but Keiko couldn’t help but notice that Sumire wasn’t having it. “Do you think Shimizu or Nakaoka are bad people?”

“Nakaoka is kind of a dick,” Keiko said, earning a glare. “Sorry. Not helping. I’ll just…” Keiko trailed off. “I’ll just not say anything.”

Felicia jumped on the table, startling everybody.

“Bad kitty!” Keiko grabbed her. “You can’t be on the table!”

“Sorry!” Felicia yelped. “I was trying to make a dramatic entrance and-” she sighed. “I’ll just get to the point. That’s not Sumire’s palace. I spent a lot of time sneaking around in there and I’ve never seen that shadow before.”

“Who does the palace belong to, then?”

“Some giant tentacle monster,” Felicia sounded nonchalant. “I’ve never heard a name.”

“Oh.” Keiko frowned. “Well, I’ll stick to news reporting then so you guys have fun with all this.”

**“That’s quite disappointing.”**

‘Hey, it isn’t your butt those tentacles will be going up.’

**“Valid complaint. I’ll allow it. I don’t even have a butt.”**

===

_ Afternoon _

Ren picked up Sumire and stuck around for an explanation of everything that occurred last night. They didn’t stay much longer than that because Sumire was exhausted and Ren wanted to finish Okumura’s palace as quickly as possible. He was pretty sure they neared the end and that meant they could send a calling card in just a few days. Keiko was nearing victory in her little race with Haru. The story on Okumura’s misdeeds was their front page for Monday’s print. Yuuki had texted multiple times that morning asking for advice on designing the page around it. Keiko didn’t get to see what it looked like on the page because she was too busy laid up with a sprained ankle.

Things at the apartment didn’t stay silent for too long because Dr. Takemi knocked on the door the second Keiko sat down. ‘I don’t like lazy Sundays anyway,’ Keiko thought. It wasn’t a sarcastic thought.

“You busy?” Takemi looked much less tired now than she did the night before. She might’ve just woken up.

Felicia must not have been up to company because she went and laid down on Keiko’s bed.

“Nope,” Keiko said, letting her in. “Take a seat.”

They sat in front of the TV. Keiko kept taking glances at the blank screen. She no longer felt comfortable just leaving it on in the background.

“What happened?” Takemi asked impatiently. “And how did you heal your ankle?”

“I got pulled into the TV,” Keiko said. “Like, I don’t know how to explain it. My friend’s dead sister appeared on TV at midnight.”

“Are you sure it wasn’t an Eric Andre skit? He does some weird shit-”

“It wasn’t a TV show. It looked too real,” Keiko cut off Takemi’s interruption. “Let me talk because you really don’t understand anything about what I’m about to explain. I know you’re used to being the smartest person in the room but seriously, shut the fuck up.”

Takemi raised her hands in a way that showed she’d back off.

“Kasumi appeared on screen and started taunting me. I stupidly reached out for the screen and something pulled me in.”

“That sounds like bullshit.”

“I know, and that’s why I’m kindly going to ask you to shut the fuck up a second time.” Keiko’s intention wasn’t to be rude. She wasn’t sure if she was truly capable of talking about it. She gripped the couch to keep her hands from shaking. 

Takemi winced. “Sorry.”

“I got hurt in there,” Keiko said. “I was attacked by these weird tentacle monster-looking things trying to make an escape. I don’t know what they are, exactly, but I’m almost positive that place has to do with the mental shutdowns.”

“How?”

“Because-” Keiko paused. “It’s the Metaverse. How familiar are you with the theory of the collective unconscious?”

“Familiar enough to know that we made fun of everyone who thought it was viable in medical school,” Takemi raised an eyebrow. “Are you saying it’s not bullshit?”

Keiko shrugged. “It’s bullshit in the sense that it’s dangerous and terrifying, but not bullshit in the sense that it isn’t real.”

“Well, thank god Ayumi’s dead.”

Keiko blinked hard. “What? Why?”

“We took Intro to Psych together and we had a bet that everything Jung said was bullshit. Loser has to lick the other’s toes.”

“Oh, that’s fucking nasty.”

“Some people are into that sort of thing,” Takemi said nonplussed. 

“Anyway, some people are capable of going into the collective unconscious,” Keiko explained. “They use a power called Persona to fight shadows, basically the parts of people that they keep hidden from others. That’s how the Phantom Thieves change hearts.”

“By removing the parts that people keep hidden from others?” Takemi nodded to herself. “That makes more sense than anything else you’ve said.”

“Anyway, I didn’t have a Persona until a couple nights ago,” Keiko explained. “The night I hurt my ankle I awoke to mine. I wouldn’t have survived without her.”

**“I think that’s overdramatic. You were in more danger last night than you were the day we met.”**

Keiko ignored the unwanted inner dialogue from her Persona.

“Last night, Makoto and I went back when we decided Sumire probably wandered in there. Makoto has a power that can heal injuries sustained in the Metaverse.”

Takemi sat in silence, taking in everything Keiko told her.

“I know it’s a lot to take in,” Keiko said. “I’m probably not the best person to explain everything to you but you wanted an explanation and we did make you come pick us up at 3 a.m.”

“On the bright side, I suddenly feel a lot less guilty about supplying drugs to a bunch of children who have dirt on me,” Takemi chuckled. “So, you think the sample I took is material from the Metaverse?”

Keiko nodded. “I thought it might be helpful for you to have a better idea where the sample actually came from. It’s highly unlikely it’s made of anything normally found in the real world.”

Takemi sighed. “That makes me feel a lot better. I keep trying everything I can to replicate it and it’s been driving me nuts. Does Makoto’s sister know about any of this?”

“Absolutely not, and she won’t,” Keiko said. “Makoto would kill me.”

“Fine,” Takemi said. “But if we’re cooperating with her, we won’t be able to keep this a secret for long.”

Keiko inhaled and exhaled. “Not looking forward to that.”

===

_ Monday, September 26, Morning _

**_Labor organizer alleges abuse, rights violations against Okumura Foods_ **

_ Big Bang Burger Supervisor Shinsuke Kishi said alarm bells went off after a corporate manager demanded unpaid overtime be used to help his store meet their monthly revenue goals. _

_ These alarm bells led him to begin organizing his workers to demand better treatment, else they declare a strike. _

_ “I don’t think what we’re asking for is outrageous,” Kishi said. “Forty-hour work weeks with paid overtime for full-time employees is the standard for every other business. I don’t know what makes Big Bang Burger so special that they can ride their full-timers so hard.” _

_ Kishi said he’s often stuck working long shifts by himself with no overtime compensation and appeals to the National Labor Commission have been unfruitful. _

_ National Labor Commission Minister Asami Kanako was found dead in her Shibuya apartment last January and the Diet has yet to appoint a replacement.  _

_ Kishi said the worker mistreatment has led him and other supervisors to behave in ways they aren’t proud of. _

_ “We’ve lost so many good young part-timers because we give them ten minutes of training then act confused when things look awful the next day when we come in,” Kishi said. “It’s really easy to say kids today don’t want to work, but I’ve been with Big Bang Burger for a long time. It was never like this when Okumura-san’s wife was around.” _

_ Kunikazu Okumura’s wife, Reina Okumura was a prominent left-wing activist known best for her work under the pen name Namura. Her relation to Okumura was lesser-known until after her death, when her husband commissioned a security agency to scrub her work from public libraries and the internet. This information was obtained via documents obtained in an Information Request from the Tokyo Public Library.  _

_ Namura died at the age of 38 from lung cancer. _

_ “Reina-chan used to drop in every once in a while,” Kishi said. “I actually chased her out of the store fairly often for trying to convince our workers to organize. I wish I’d been kinder in those days. I think knowing that not all of the Okumura’s are against his will help strengthen our cause.” _

_ Big Bang Burger’s expansion outside of Japan has caused issues outside of the ones on the labor side. _

_ Anna LaMoille, a Japanese-American dual citizen former Big Bang Burger employee said their Waikiki, Hawaii location replaced a landmark fast-casual family-owned burger joint owned by the recently deceased Hau Iakopa. _

_ “We’d been setting up a campaign to purchase and operate the restaurant in Hau’s honor,” LaMoille said. “Okumura swooped in with an offer way above market value that the community couldn’t match.” _

_ LaMoille said this kind of behavior isn’t unusual for American companies, so the city government had no reason to disallow Okumura’s purchase.  _

_ “I don’t have to work,” Lamoille said. “I like to, and I’ve stuck around at Big Bang Burger for a few years while I finish my degree. It’s just a shame to see a place like that spiral after Okumura bought it.” _

_ LaMoille held no ill will towards her immediate manager, a holdover from the previous owner named Troy Richards.  _

_ “This dude is holding that place together with duct tape and glue,” LaMoille said. “I got frustrated with him and we’d both yell at each other, but he gets nothing but my admiration. I’m glad to be out of there.” _

_ A Freedom of Information Act request to the Hawaii Labor Board brought back 18 complaints against their Big Bang Burger, although the contents of the complaints were redacted for the protection of worker privacy.  _

_ The Hawaii location has only been open for nine months. _

_ Younger employees like LaMoille are the types of employees Kishi was referring to when he said they struggled to keep good, young employees. _

_ “I know people will laugh at me and that’s fine, but working retail at a young age can build important skills for the kids that come in looking for their first job or the college kids that need a part-time job for beer money, or even a salaryman that needs a second job for whatever reason,” Kishi said. “I won’t accept an opposition to that stance. The way workers here are treated prevents this job from having any utility to society. We’re instead making it this weird late-Capitalist hellscape where nobody has the tools to succeed despite their employers having the resources available.” _

_ Kunikazu Okumura declined to comment on this story, although he claimed there would be a reckoning coming for those standing in his way. _

Keiko and Kaori were the talks of the school that morning, and Makoto did an incredible job taking over Keiko’s position while she was sleeping off waking up to her Persona. 

Kaori and Mizuki waited for Keiko in the newspaper office that morning.

“I’m so happy you’re back,” Kaori enthusiastically wrapped Keiko in her arms. 

“Standing in the doorway, Kay,” Mizuki rolled her eyes. “Good to see you back, though.”

“Glad to be back,” Keiko said, looking down at Kaori. “You can let go now.”

“Sorry!” Kaori backed off sheepishly. “I’ve gotten so much feedback on my story. Thank you so much for letting me pick it up.”

Keiko chuckled and took a seat at her desk. “I’m just happy you were able to grab it. I wasn’t in any shape to get to it. You did great on it.” She turned to Mizuki. “I’m not going to pretend you were given anything groundbreaking or crazy, but you did a great job covering that meeting. They’re obnoxiously boring, so even 200 words of copy explaining what happened is a godsend for readers and us. Seriously.”

Mizuki thanked her quietly. 

“You two should get to class, though,” Keiko said. “I’m heading there soon.” ‘Time to deal with Ushimaru again.’

_ “Keiko Miyahara to the principal’s office. Keiko Miyahara to the principal’s office.” _

She let out a long sigh and a sarcastic “Yay!”

Keiko made a show of marching to the principal’s office, lifting her knees high like a medieval soldier in formation. It drew laughter from students passing in the hall. ‘I could embrace being a clown.’

**“Comedy is, on occasion, defiance. The best rebels alter culture by jamming its wheels via laughter.”**

‘What do you know about comedy?’ 

**“I know what you know.”**

‘Does that work both ways?’

**“Mostly. I see no utility in flooding you with an overwhelming knowledge of Norse legends.”**

‘Hey, maybe if I have to flee Japan I could become a museum tour guide in Europe.’

**“I will not be useful in helping you learn other languages.”**

‘Well, there goes that plan.’

The principal office doors were already opened because an enraged Ushimaru was storming out of them.

“You’ll be happy,” he grumbled at Keiko as she walked by.

“Did I do something to you?”

He stopped and started to turn around. Then he kept going. “It’s not worth it.”

‘If Ushimaru doesn’t like him, they must’ve done a great job hiring a new principal,’ Keiko thought.

She turned into the door and noted a woman sitting behind the desk. ‘Her. Ushimaru doesn’t like her. That makes sense.’ It wasn’t a secret that Ushimaru had little respect for women.

Especially a young woman, which the new principal happened to be. Shockingly young, Keiko thought, with auburn hair a few shades lighter than Sumire’s.

“Hello,” she stood up and bowed. “It’s great to finally meet you!”

She seemed friendly enough and Keiko decided to try and show some respect. She bowed and greeted the new principal. “I’m Keiko Miyahara. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Kotone Shiomi,” the new principal said. “This is so weird.”

“What?” Keiko gave her an odd look. “If anyone thinks this is weird, it should be me.”

“No, you’re right,” Principal Shiomi said. “I don’t do all the formal stuff. Um, anyway.” She shuffled her hands on her desk, seeming just as nervous as Keiko felt. “I understand you were having issues with the previous administration and I wanted to personally meet you to assure you that I plan on being as open and transparent as possible.” She looked down at a folder she had sitting on her desk. It was stuffed to the brim with paperwork. “That includes this.” She slid it across the table.

“What is it?” Keiko opened the folder. “Shit.” Inside the folder were notes from Principal Kobayakawa in his handwriting on nearly every student in the school in alphabetical order. 

“There’s some pretty damning evidence in there,” Principal Shiomi frowned. “I know better than to go to the police.” Keiko raised an eyebrow and the principal clarified. “Um, my own experiences.”

“I don’t get it, though,” Keiko had opened to a bunch of different pages. She tried to avoid going to pages of anyone that might make her have too strong of a reaction. Shimizu’s page was bad enough. “Why give this to me?”

“Well, that’s a long story,” Shiomi frowned. “I wish I could tell you the entire thing. The long and short of it is we have a mutual friend of means and influence, and it’s kind of your fault I’m here.”

“I don’t want you to take this as blame,” Shiomi spoke carefully. Keiko didn’t like where this was going. “Your reporting is what got Kobayakawa killed. Now, can we talk about something else? All this death stuff is a major bummer.”

Keiko blinked hard. She didn’t know what to say, so she went with her basic instincts. “Would you be willing to do an interview so I can introduce you to the school?”

“Of course!” Keiko couldn’t get over how the principal’s eyes beamed now that the conversation had shifted to something less serious. It reminded her of Haru’s mood shifts, in a way. “Ask away!”

“Don’t I have class?”

“Meh, Ushimaru was in here to complain about you, specifically,” Shiomi shrugged. “I’m not about to subject you to more of that.”

Keiko rolled her eyes. “He’s such an asshole.”

“I’m getting that impression,” she said with a small smile. “I’d be doing a bad job if I let you skip class on my first day, though.”

“Can’t be any worse than the last guy,” Keiko sighed. “Think we could schedule out a time? I don’t schedule anything on Monday because I hibernate after school but if you aren’t busy after school tomorrow, I could do it then.”

Shiomi agreed. “I appreciate someone who has their priorities straight.”

“I definitely do not have my priorities straight,” Keiko chuckled. “I’m just a caffeine junkie who has to schedule when she crashes.”

===

_ After School _

Keiko was leaving the school when her phone buzzed.

**ALMArt:** Hey, saw the story. Great job.

**ALMArt:** Also I’m in Tokyo visiting my grandparents

**ALMArt:** Also they might’ve cut me off when they saw the story

**ALMArt:** Also I might be homeless for a few days.

**ALMArt:** Also you might’ve drunkenly offered me a room if I ever found myself in Tokyo again

**Keiko:** Shit

**ALMArt:** I didn’t foresee them being this angry

**ALMArt:** or angry at all, really

**ALMArt:** apparently they’re still mad at their daughter for liking white men

**ALMArt:** That’s somehow my fault

**Keiko:** Meet me at the station nearest Inokashira park. I have an extra room.

**ALMArt:** It’s just til I can afford a ticket back to Hawaii. Or LA. Or something.

**Keiko:** take me with you

She was about to check her other messages because she’d gotten a million while she was at school when her phone rang. 

“Sae, what’s up?”

“Thank god you picked up,” Sae sounded out of breath. “I’m almost to the school. You have Makoto with you?”

“She’s got newspaper stuff, why?”

“I’ve got your mom. Somebody tried to break into her house and- Learn to drive!” Sae shouted at traffic. “I’m almost there. Tell Makoto she needs to go directly to your apartment.”

“Hi, Keiko!” Keiko’s mom sounded no worse for wear. “I thought it was your dad role-playing again-”

“You almost died!” Sae sounded as sick of Aya as Keiko was.

“That’s all part of the-”

Sae grunted. “I don’t want to hear any more of this.”

Aya sounded like a punished teenager. “Fine. Buzzkill.”

“This might be the wrong time to remind her that she left him,” Keiko made a face as she spoke. 

“Hey, any port in a storm.”

Sae grunted again. “Dear god, how are you this immature?”

“It’s called fun-”

“We’re pulling up.” The line went dead and a nice four-door car pulled up to the school gate. 

Makoto came running out of the school. 

“Sae called me first,” she explained. “Let’s go.”

They sped off towards Keiko’s apartment, where they were apparently seeking safety.

“Um, this is a bad time to tell you that I have to pick somebody up at the train station,” Keiko said.

“I’ll pick them up,” Sae grumbled. “She can’t possibly be worse than your mother.”

“I resent that-”

“Mom, you’re a pain in the ass.”

She folded her arms over her chest.“Only on Tuesdays.”

“Are you high?”

“Are you not?” She looked at her daughter confused. Keiko looked away.

“Who are you picking up?” Makoto turned to Keiko, probably in hopes of ignoring Aya’s nonsense.

“Anna’s in town,” Keiko said. “She got disowned for talking to me.”

“You just ruin everyone’s life, don’t you?” Aya said, then laughed like she told the funniest joke in existence. 

Keiko deadpanned. “It sure feels like I do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter marks 500k words written in total since August. 
> 
> Keiko's mother is in need of a parent more than Keiko is. Good god. Also, Anna's there after getting disowned.
> 
> FemC is finally in this story! Look at me, introducing new characters nearly 200k words in because I have no self-control. I did try and foreshadow this, though.


	29. The Eggs Files

_Monday, September 26, After School_

Keiko wished she had a photo of Anna’s face when Sae’s BMW pulled up. 

“Hey, sorry,” Keiko spoke through an unrolled window in the back seat. “I meant to meet you myself but something came up.” She opened the door and scooted closer to Makoto. “Hop in.”

Makoto gave a friendly smile. “Nice to see you again, Anna.”

Anna looked around at the other people in the car. “Am I dropping in on something?”

“Um,” Keiko paused. “Yeah. My mom’s going to be staying with me now.”

“Oh! I can’t intrude-”

“You’re much more wanted company than she is,” Keiko huffed.

“Hey! That’s mean-”

“She’s high as a kite,” Sae informed Anna. _“_ And _somebody_ decided to write a takedown of the richest man in Tokyo.”

Anna laughed awkwardly. “I think I probably played a role in that. I didn’t introduce myself. Anna LaMoille.”

“Sae Niijima,” Sae said, her eyes still on the road. “Makoto’s my younger sister.”

“I made the connection,” Anna grinned. “You’ve got the same eyes. Thank you for the ride.”

The station wasn’t that far enough from Keiko’s apartment for her to provide a proper explanation to anybody about what was happening, and the overwhelming shock her mother had when they entered her abode didn’t make things easier.

“So, did your mom hit her head or something?” Makoto and Keiko had to pretend they didn’t hear Felicia although they both wanted to laugh. “Why is she being so… dumb?”

Aya’s first steps into the apartment led her to the window. She was fascinated with looking down. 

“Look at all the little cars!” 

Keiko sighed. “I’m fairly convinced she threw her husband out just so she could start smoking in the house.”

“Hey! I didn’t smoke anything,” Aya pouted. “I ate a brownie and I was also tired of helping him clean his-”

“That’s enough,” Sae mercifully interrupted Aya. She groaned. “I have to get back to work so I’ll make this quick. You might want to sit down.”

“I don’t see how this could be any worse than everything else,” Keiko sighed. 

“Uh, well, the short version of the story is that one of your mother’s neighbors notified Sojiro that a strange man was asking where you lived. The man’s name is Satoshi Sugimura-”

“Haru’s fiance,” Keiko frowned. “Cool.”

“Yeah, well,” Sae stumbled over her words. “Sojiro confronted Sugimura and might’ve shot him in the leg. He’ll be going to jail for awhile.”

“They can’t take Sojiro to jail-”

“Right,” Sae said. “Sorry. Sugimura, I meant.” 

Sae sat down on the couch and took a deep breath. ‘Something feels off,’ Keiko thought. It was confirmed when Felicia climbed on the couch with her and snuggled in her lap. Felicia wasn’t a fan.

“Sorry. I’ve never seen anyone get shot before.” She looked down into her lap. “It was self-defense, though. Easily provable, in the leg so it wasn’t lethal, and Sugimura already had a strike against him for assaulting a doorman,” Sae said. “I think he was sent by somebody, though.”

“Yeah,” Keiko frowned. “Okumura, probably. What were they going to do?”

Aya interrupted the adults speaking. “Have their way with me, hopefully-”

“Can you shut the fuck up?” 

Everyone turned and looked at Anna, who leaned against a kitchen chair. 

“She just watched somebody get shot and you’re talkin’ about getting railed.” Anna huffed. “It’s obnoxious. The man either wanted you dead or wanted to use you to get after your daughter. At least pretend you give a fuck.”

Aya frowned. “Sorry.”

“Mom, if you’re going to stay here, you _have_ to behave,” Keiko said. “I can’t babysit. I literally do not have the time.”

“Right,” Aya said. “I’ll behave.”

Sae had to clear her throat in order to speak again. “I need to head back to work. They’re expecting me.”

Keiko nodded. “Call me later. I’d like to hear why you were there.”

“I’ll give one of you a call. It might be late,” Sae said, taking her leave. 

Keiko didn’t let the room stay silent for long. 

“There’s two spare rooms. They’re about the same size, so I don’t expect a fight over them. Bathrooms down the hall to your left,” Keiko laid out some rules. “Food in the fridge is fair game as long as you leave leftovers. If you use up the rest of the coffee I reserve the right to chop off your fingers and feed them to Felicia.” She turned to her mom. “And for the love of god, Mom, please no perverted comments about anybody. I know you think you’re hilarious and sometimes it’s fine but you’re mostly just a dipshit. And no smoking. It’s bad for you.”

“Thank you for letting me stay, Keiko,” Anna said. “I didn’t have anywhere else to go.”

“It’s the least I can do,” Keiko shrugged. “Your name’s as attached to that story as mine. I need to check on Kishi.”

Keiko went to her phone to send him a text when she noticed some text messages.

 **Alibaba:** Sojiro is so fucking cool

 **Alibaba:** Like I know he’s having a tough time bc he mighta just killed a dude BUT DAMN

 **Alibaba:** Is it wrong that I’m proud of him?

 **SendNews:** Sugimura’s a fucking asshole. He shoulda aimed higher

 **Alibaba:** you didn’t strike me as the vengeful type

 **SendNews:** he did try to kidnap my mom

 **Alibaba:** fair

She had messages from Ren, too.

 **Ren:** So, Sojiro’s a great shot, apparently

 **Keiko:** Got him in the leg, I guess. Should’ve aimed higher.

 **Ren:** Do you mean shoot him in the head or shoot him in the dick

 **Keiko:** Yes

...Haru was taking this well.

 **Haru:** He better hope he never gets out of prison.

 **Haru:** I’m so so so sorry

 **Haru:** I’m doing some investigating. 

**Haru:** Pretty sure my father put him up to it

 **Haru:** Definitely sure my father put him up to it.

**Haru sent a photo.**

It was a screenshot of an email Haru had taken from her father’s computer.

 **Haru:** I’ll kill them both

 **Keiko:** Not if I do it first

 **Haru:** no fair

Keiko then went to text Kishi. Okumura very well may have gone after his wife and kids.

 **Keiko:** Hey, Shinsuke. Checking in. You okay?

 **Shinsuke:** I’m good! Great story this morning.

 **Keiko:** Thank you. I appreciate your help. 

**Keiko:** Okumura retaliated pretty harshly against me today. I wanted to make sure you’re safe.

 **Shinsuke:** We’re good. I got fired but like, it’s whatever. My lawyer already recommended we hide out in the countryside so yeah.

 **Keiko:** has anyone ever said thank god for lawyers unironically?

 **Shinsuke:** Weird. My wife said the same thing

Keiko looked up from her phone to find Felicia sitting on her mother’s lap, batting at her face with a paw.

“Stop!” Aya laughed every time a paw hit her face. “It tickles!”

“She’s out of her mind,” Felicia laughed. “Watch.” She booped Aya’s nose with her nose.

“Boop!” Aya laughed and Felicia did it again.

“Don’t do drugs,” Keiko grumbled. “I’m taking a nap.”

Makoto came back from the bathroom. “Anna and I are going to pick up your mother’s things. Haru’s sending a truck so we can grab your beds, too.”

“You need me to come with?” Keiko prayed her help wasn’t needed.

Makoto shook her head. “And deal with a napless Keiko for a third straight week? I’d rather get kidnapped.”

Keiko frowned. “That’s not funny.”

“Yes it is,” Makoto teased.

“Fine,” Keiko said. “It is.” She gave her girlfriend a hug, then laid down. She had a nice nap.

===

_Evening_

Keiko shot awake. “That file!” Everything had been so chaotic after school that she completely forgot about the file Principal Shiomi gave her. “How the fuck did I forget that?”

“Give a cat some warning,” Felicia jumped off the bed. “You good?”

Keiko shook her head. “The new principal gave me some of Kobayakawa’s files.”

“New principal?” Felicia’s ears perked up. “Gah, something exciting finally happens the one day I stay home.”

“She seemed nice,” Keiko said. “I think I like her.”

“You just like her because she greased the wheels,” Felicia mewed. 

“I’m not above bribery,” Keiko grinned.

“Psh. Humans.” Felicia turned towards the door and started walking toward the living room. “We should tell Makoto.”

“In front of company?”

“Just tell them you two need some alone time,” Felicia chuckled. “They’ll gladly let you have it, I bet.”

“That’s gross,” Keiko frowned. “It’d probably work, though.”

“Unless your mom asks to watch-”

“Finish that sentence and we’re going to find out if a cat can hit terminal velocity,” Keiko glared at Felicia. “We can’t,” Felicia said. “But I’d also like to avoid testing that.”

Keiko followed Felicia into the living room, where Makoto and Aya made idle chit chat while Anna cooked dinner. Keiko couldn’t place where she recognized the familiar smell from.

Her mother glanced at Keiko before going back to her conversation with Makoto. 

“It was a long time coming, honestly,” Aya shrugged. “Bad planning on my part.” She nodded at Keiko. “I told myself I was keeping him around so she’d have a better influence than me around.”

“And then you both neglected me for 16 years-”

“I don’t know about that,” Aya said. “You were pretty clingy as a toddler. Once you learned to shit by yourself you-” she huffed. “Sorry. I get really introspective after I sober up.”

“Hey, if it means you actually reflect on your behavior and change it I consider that a victory,” Keiko grinned. “Sorry, Mom. I give you too much shit.”

“Depends on the day. How bad was I?”

“You were fucking awful,” Anna yelled from the kitchen. “I’m not convinced you should be allowed to eat.”

“I didn’t know I was going to get kidnapped when I ate the brownie, okay? I’d have saved it for _after_ y’all saved me if I had known.”

“She does have a point,” Makoto shrugged. “Not that I condone such behavior.”

“Oh, piss off. Aren’t I supposed to be the old person here?”

“You are,” Keiko rolled her eyes. “You should try acting like it.”

Anna mercifully interrupted their conversation to let them know that dinner was ready. She cooked curry that was almost as good as Sojiro’s.

There wasn’t much conversation over dinner. Aya didn’t want to get her foot even deeper in her mouth and Anna showed visible discomfort. ‘She probably feels guilty for losing her temper,’ Keiko thought. Dinner was awkward.

Anna eventually broke the silence, directing an apology at Keiko’s mother. “Hey, I wasn’t trying to be mean earlier-”

Aya waved her off. “I was being annoying.”

“You sure? Can we like, start over?”

“Sure, but keep that energy for the next time I do something stupid,” Aya chuckled. “If you’re sticking around here, you’re bound to- Keiko, what are kids calling it?”

“Stupid shit? I have no idea,” Keiko rolled her eyes. 

“Dumb bitch syndrome.”

“Oh, no,” Keiko frowned. “Mom discovered TikTok.”

“Why’s that a problem?” Aya took a bite of curry. “This is great, by the way.”

Anna beamed.

Keiko groaned. “This is by far the worst thing to happen to me in this last week.”

Makoto laughed. “We’re going to come home to Aya dancing, aren’t we?”

Aya shook her head. “Nope. It’s a long time family tradition. We cannot dance.”

“It’s true,” Makoto said. “Keiko tried dancing once. I had to explain to Sae that she wasn’t possessed by some kind of demon.”

“Yep,” Aya grinned. “That’s that Shirogane blood in ya.” 

“Speaking of that, how’s Grandpa? You tell him about the divorce?” Keiko raised an eyebrow.

“He’d die,” Aya chuckled. “He hated Nobu.” She picked at her food a little. “I think I did, too.”

“I barely knew the guy,” Keiko said. “Considering I lived in a house with him for 15 years, I think that’s considered neglect.”

“Eh,” Aya shrugged. “He didn’t mind paying for you but he didn’t know how to handle a daughter. As long as I didn’t ask him for help with the emotional stuff, he didn’t complain.”

“Why haven’t you told Grandpa?”

“I don’t want him to think I need him to bail me out again,” Aya said.

Makoto mumbled “yeah, you have Keiko for that” under her breath.

Aya must’ve heard it. “Do you really think I’m that stupid?”

“Yes,” Makoto said before Keiko could reply.

Keiko’s phone rang, taking her away from the ensuing argument. 

“Hey,” Keiko said. “You good?”

“I’m fine,” Sae said. “Shaken still, but I convinced the judge that Sugimura needs to be detained til his trial.”

“When’s that?”

“Thursday,” Sae said. “I take it you’ll be there?”

“He did try to kidnap my mom. Is Okumura fighting it?”

“Nope. He’s cutting ties,” Sae said. “His last name isn’t as important as your mom’s, apparently.”

“They that scared of a Shirogane?”

“Bet they want to keep a certain detective away from Tokyo, I bet.” Sae chuckled.

“Jokes on them. I barely know her.” Keiko sighed. “I’m so annoyed that got out.” 

“I would pretend you aren’t,” Sae said. “Or reach out. She’s brilliant.”

“Eh. She’s a cop,” Keiko chuckled. “How smart can she be?”

===

_Late Night_

**Sumire:** This might be bad timing, but dad wants to know if you can be on his show Wednesday

 **Keiko:** He has my email and my phone number

 **Sumire:** You’re less likely to say no if I ask

 **Keiko:** What? I like your dad, tho

 **Sumire:** I told him that. I think this is his way of making sure I don’t shut out friends.

 **Keiko:** What’s he need me to rant about?

 **Sumire:** Akechi told him about Okumura trying to have your mother kidnapped

 **Keiko:** god fucking damn it

 **Sumire:** Yeah…

 **Sumire:** he also told him about your uh… idk what the right word is

 **Sumire:** lineage?

 **Keiko:** Am I on the show alone or with Akechi?

 **Keiko:** Lineage works.

 **Sumire:** Let me ask

 **Sumire:** alone

 **Keiko:** Alright. I’ll do it.

 **Keiko:** If he wants Akechi on the show, double my fee.

 **Keiko:** if he lets me kill him on camera, I’ll do it for free

 **Sumire:** He said the censors won’t let that through.

 **Keiko:** fair.

‘I guess I should get on top of this.’ Keiko swiped through her phone and texted Yuuki.

 **Keiko:** Hey. Is our new website ready?

 **Yuuki:** It’s been live for nearly a week

 **Keiko:** Oh.

 **Keiko:** I’m sorry I missed that

 **Yuuki:** You had more important things going on. 

**Keiko:** I’ll have something for you to post tonight. News is about to break that Okumura had my mom kidnapped.

 **Yuuki:** I really have no idea what to say. Is she safe? Are you safe?

 **Keiko:** We’re good. Trying to keep tabs on the whole staff. If they’re going after people connected to me, you’re all in danger

 **Yuuki:** Yeah. I thought about that.

_**They tried to kidnap my mom.** _

**_By Keiko Miyahara_ **

**__** _So, it’s typically a big no-no in journalism to write news stories when you’re closely related to the subject of the story. In the interest of transparency, I’m writing this as a column (or a blog post, since it’s being posted online) so everyone knows this is something personal to me. I will not pretend to be an unbiased participant in something that happened to me._

_It’s as the headline stated. I left Shujin Monday afternoon and received a frantic phone call from a friend who saw a neighbor shoot a home intruder at my mother’s house. The man shot is Satoshi Sugimura, the well-connected son of a politician, Hiroshi Sugimura. Hiroshi Sugimura is the Chairman of the United Future Party._

_Satoshi Sugimura broke into my mother’s home at the behest of Kunikazu Okumura. That’s quite an accusation for me to make, I know. I have proof._

Keiko inserted the screenshot Haru sent her. ‘Sorry, Haru,’ Keiko thought. 

_See those words?_

_“Something must be done about Miyahara since our traditional tactics are no longer an option.”_

_What’s no longer an option, Okumura-san? I gave you a chance to defend yourself and you screamed at me like I didn’t have your balls in a vice. I even tried to make you seem a little bit more professional in the story I ran because I thought it would be unfair to use your exact words. You said no comment, so I kept it strictly to a no comment._

_What are you afraid of, Kuni? No part of that story was accusational. Are you truly that incapable of taking criticism? Are unions that scary? Nobody feels sorry for you. The largest amount of money I will ever see in my entire life is a quarter of what you’re hoarding._

_My mom is safe and sound. Some friends returned to get my mother’s things and they brought back photo albums, so now everyone is taking turns laughing at my baby pictures._

_It’s nice to pretend things are normal for a little bit. I know they aren’t, and I’m sure this isn’t the last attempt you’ll make at me. This column will probably make you come after me again._

_There’s one more important part to this story: Sojiro Sakura, who owns LeBlanc Coffee and Curry in Yongen, saved my mother’s life. He’s a wonderful man, one of my personal heroes and now he’s a literal hero. Anyone who reads my work and enjoys it should go pay him a visit._

_Also, because I can’t praise Sojiro without roasting him at least a little: He’s single, ladies._

“Hey, Mako,” Keiko called. Makoto was laying in the bed scrolling through her phone. “Want to take a look at this for me?”

“Sure,” Makoto stood up and traded places with Keiko.

Keiko laid on the bed. ‘I don’t even know if I should go through with this. I act like I have him cornered but what if they know something I don’t? I could be putting everyone who doesn’t have a Persona in danger.’ Keiko went through everyone in her head that could have a shadow. Her mom, Shiho, Kaori, Yuuki, Hikari… 

‘Maybe I’m lucky and they go after Sumire’s shadow first,’ Keiko thought. ‘Actually, maybe I should name drop Sumire to see if they bite…’ She decided that would put Sumire in too much danger. 

“You can’t post this,” Makoto turned around and glared at Keiko. “You’re going to get yourself killed.”

Keiko shrugged. “Probably.”

“I don’t mind you sitting down and writing an actual story about what happened today. People need to know, and if Akechi’s running around telling people what happened, I agree that it’s news you need to get on top of.” Makoto stood up and walked over to the bed and sat next to her girlfriend. She gave Keiko a kiss on the forehead. “We don’t need you doing anything this dangerous. I know you’re angry. You’re right to be angry, but you’re not right to just run at this head-on.”

“You’re right,” Keiko sat back up. “It’s just-” she grunted. “He went after my mom. Who does that?”

“Evil people. Very evil people,” Makoto frowned. “We’re going to take him down.”

“When are you sending the calling card?”

“Tomorrow,” Makoto sighed. “At least, we were until everything happened today-”

“Do it,” Keiko leaned in and kissed Makoto. “I’ll have this story out before I go on TV Wednesday. We’ll hit him while he’s a sociopath and while he’s feeling sorry for himself.”

Keiko finished her story that night. The clock didn’t even hit midnight.

===

_Morning, Tuesday, September 27_

Keiko didn’t have enough respect for Ushimaru to not check her phone in his class. He didn’t have the balls to throw chalk at her. It was a nice working relationship the two had.

 **Ohya:** Okumura literally tried to kidnap your mom

 **Ohya:** what the fuck

 **Keiko:** That’s what I said

 **Ohya:** but is your mom really a Shirogane? I got the police report

 **Keiko:** Yup. Newly divorced, if you’re interested

 **Ohya:** I haven’t dated a woman since college

 **Ohya:** what’s she look like

 **Keiko:** For the love of god no

 **Keiko:** It was a joke

Keiko submitted the story to the Setagaya Journal instead of running it just on her website. She wanted the world to know what Okumura tried to do to her.

===

_After School_

“Miyahara-kun.” Keiko wasn’t a step out of the door when the new principal approached her. “You have time to go over those files with me?”

“That’s actually my plan for the afternoon,” Keiko said with a friendly smile. It was nice to have a principal actually interested in her work. “You’re welcome to join. Let’s not do it at the school, though. I need coffee.” ‘I also need to know what planet you’re from.’

“I’d like to take a trip to Yongen, if you don’t mind,” Principal Shiomi said. “One of the teachers told me about a wonderful coffee shop there.”

“Is it LeBlanc?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. 

“Yes!” Shiomi said. “Sadayo- erm. I mean Miss Kawakami told me I needed to try it.”

Keiko grinned. “You two friends?”

Shiomi nodded. “It would have been a rough first few days without her.”

“Kawakami’s a good person.”

They took the train to Yongen and made the walk in relative silence. Shiomi was easily distracted by the numerous stray cats, and Keiko silently wondered if she would want to meet Felicia. Felicia stayed home because she didn’t trust Aya not to steal anything. The irony was lost on her. 

Futaba sat at the counter with a laptop while Sojiro stood behind the counter thumbing through a newspaper. 

“Welcome-” Sojiro looked up and noticed it was Keiko. “Long time, no see, stranger.”

Keiko left Shiomi at the door and walked briskly to Sojiro behind the counter. “You’ve earned a hug.” She wrapped her arms around him.

He shook his head. “Nah. Thank Futaba. She’s the one that tipped me off. I thought she was playing a joke at first.”

Futaba’s mouth dropped “Why would I joke about that?”

“You did use audio from a school shooting to throw Akechi off my trail once,” Keiko shrugged. 

“Uh, she did what?” Shiomi approached behind Futaba, which made the girl squeak. She then hid behind Keiko, but not before sneaking an arm over to close her laptop. “Sorry,” Shiomi said.

Futaba crept out from behind Keiko and gave Shiomi a narrow look. “I know you.”

“That’s concerning,” Shiomi said. “I have no idea who you are.”

“You wouldn’t,” Futaba said. “But you’re-” Futaba ducked behind the counter as LeBlanc’s bell rang.

“Welcome,” Sojiro spoke to Goro Akechi as he walked in. “The kid’s not here.”

“Oh, that’s quite alright,” Akechi smiled his fake smile. “I didn’t realize Miyahara-chan would be in. Or should I say Shirogane-san?”

“It’s Miyahara still,” Keiko shot back. “I might hyphenate just so it’s harder for everyone to say.”

Akechi chuckled. “That’s in character for you. I’m still confused why you would hide your heritage like that.” He gave a look of genuine confusion.

“It would be weird to use a name that’s not mine because it already has notoriety,” Keiko shrugged. “It’s not like I know her.”

“That’s a shame,” Akechi frowned. “You would benefit greatly from her guidance, I’m sure.”

“I think I do just fine on my own, just as she did.” Keiko tried to give Akechi her best ‘go away’ look. “I don’t know what you have to gain by telling everyone about my relation, but I would like you to stop.”

“My apologies,” Akechi’s apology felt insincere, Keiko thought. “I didn’t realize your familial relation was a sore subject.”

“It’s not a sore subject,” Keiko glared him down. “You’re trying to hurt my credibility by framing my rise as nepotism.”

Akechi shook his head and apologized. “That wasn’t my intention, but I understand what it looks like. I forget that we’re adversaries before friends.”

Keiko sat next to Futaba at the bar to put distance between them. She’d noticed Futaba stiffen when the detective walked in.

“I’m afraid I’ll have to take mine to go,” he told Sojiro. “I was hoping to run into Ren.”

“I think he’s on a date,” Sojiro said. “I wouldn’t bother him.”

“I won’t,” Akechi said with a fake smile. “I’ll have to meet up with him another time.” He turned towards Keiko. “And Miyahara-chan, what happened to your mother was nearly a grave tragedy. I’ll do everything in my power to ensure that Sugimura and Okumura are punished to the fullest extent of the law.”

“Thanks, Akechi,” Keiko hoped she gave an honest facial expression.

He left without another word.

Futaba scooted into the booth across from Shiomi. Keiko did the same, shoving Futaba closer to the wall.

“Okay, now that he’s gone,” Futaba whispered. “You interned for my mom. You were at the funeral.”

Shiomi gaved a confused look. “What? Who’s your mom? I interned a lot of places-”

“Wakaba Isshiki.”

Shiomi’s face fell. “Oh. I don’t know how I didn’t realize you were her daughter.”

“It’s the orange hair,” Sojiro butted in from behind the counter. He was working on getting plates ready for Keiko and Shiomi. “She dyed it so she could stop seeing her mother in the mirror.”

“That’s not why I dyed it!” Futaba protested. “I dyed it because-”

“You wanted to look like one of those weird anime girls,” Sojiro grumbled. “What do you call them? Waifus?”

Keiko and Shiomi shared cringing looks. 

“Sojiro! That’s-” Futaba sighed. “At least you got the name right.” She looked at Shiomi. “Now, let’s go through that file.”

“Oh, you told your friend?” Shiomi looked at Keiko.

“Nope! I don’t believe in privacy,” Futaba grinned.

“She’s a creep,” Keiko said. “It saves me more than it hurts me.” 

She expected Shiomi to look concerned, but she gave an understanding look and a nod instead. “It’s like having a navigator. If you miss something, they won’t.” Shiomi had a bright, friendly smile. ‘It’s no wonder they hired her. She’s like a people magnet.’ “My friend Fuuka is that way. She grants me a little privacy, though.”

“Yeah,” Keiko rolled her eyes. “Futaba probably saw both me and my girlfriend naked before either of us-” her eyes got wide. “Oh, shit. I’m-”

Shiomi shook her head and made a zipping motion across her mouth. “I don’t worry about that stuff. Went through my own bi panic phase in college and came out of it a better woman. At least got rid of the ‘panic’ part of it.” 

“Good to know.” Keiko still felt uneasy. “We should get looking at the files.” She pulled the binder out of her backpack and placed it on the table. Sojiro placed food on the table at around the same time.

“Eat first,” he said. “Knowing you, you’ve been living off convenience store bento.”

“Not true!” Keiko said. “My cat steals enough food for the whole family.”

Futaba and Shiomi laughed and Keiko shook her head. “I’m not kidding. Felicia keeps stealing people’s shit. It’s so frustrating.”

Shiomi continued to talk about the binder, ignoring the bit about Keiko’s cat.

Keiko wasn’t having it. “Wanna see photos of my cat?”

“She really is adorable,” Futaba pointed out. “Like, criminally cute.”

“Fine,” Shiomi relented. “I’m more of a dog person, though.”

They finished their food while Keiko showed off her cat. It was a good way to avoid working and eating at the same time.

“Alright, now it’s time for the files,” Keiko said. 

“Okay, so I’ve already gone through quite a few and I’ve got a list of the students with the most detailed files,” Shiomi said. “You, Amamiya, Suzui and a student I can’t find named Fujinami have the most detailed files, but I can’t find a record of Fujinami anywhere else in the school. It’s like she disappeared.”

Keiko shook her head. “I’ve done a couple stories on her. Her mom was Kamoshida’s first known victim.”

“Oh. Well, that explains the file being so vague,” Shiomi frowned. She laid out Rio’s file in front of Keiko and Futaba.

_Rio Fujinami, 14. I told Kamoshida multiple times that admitting her into the school was a terrible idea and he demanded it. Suguru was enamored with his perversions and claimed her enrollment was a personal matter. I am sure he has regrets now that Fujinami has played a major role in airing his crimes. Not only have his crimes been made known, his connections to the mental shutdowns have made him and me a liability. I do not know much of Fujinami, but her unfortunate involvement in this ordeal may be our undoing._

“This doesn’t even really say anything about her,” Shiomi said. “It just blames her for Kamoshida’s downfall, which seems preposterous. She’s not even mentioned in your early work.”

Keiko shook her head. “She left almost immediately after Suzui jumped.”

“Suzui’s file is very sad, too,” Shiomi said. “It’s very strange to see her called a poor student, as well. I asked Kawakami how Shiho was handling her classes and she said she’s improved greatly.”

“Well, she’s no longer under the threat of constant abuse,” Futaba said. “Of course she’s doing better.”

Shiomi laid out Shiho’s file.

_Shiho Suzui, 16. Poor student. Shy. Submissive. Good volleyball player._

_UPDATE: Has returned to Shujin after initially looking at a transfer. Has since turned into a complete monster. Fighting with teachers, traumatizing other students with transparent disregard for taboo subjects. Acts like she owns the school. Likely a Phantom Thief._

“Was he really more worried about the Phantom Thieves than the fact that he was employing a serial rapist?” Shiomi looked to Shiho. “Is that really how Kobayakawa was?”

Keiko nodded. “We should look at other students. Maybe somebody less infuriating,” Keiko said, pulling the book away and flipping to Shimizu’s page.

_Hikari Shimizu, 17. Poor to average student. Tends to doodle in class. Quick temper. Unlikely capable of the feats needed to be a Phantom Thief._

Keiko sighed. “Kamoshida doesn’t get an investigation, but you can bet your sweet ass this shitty school has files on every student to find out if they're a Phantom Thief.” She thumbed through the binder to find Ren’s page. 

_Ren Amamiya, 16. Brilliant student. Might seem like he isn’t paying attention, but he’s extremely perceptive. Routinely insubordinate to his teachers and seems to enjoy embarrassing them when they try to catch him off guard. Specifically held conflict with Kamoshida prior to confession. Often seen with our school’s biggest troublemakers, Sakamoto, Takamaki and Suzui. Very likely a Phantom Thief._

“Here’s Amamiya’s page,” Keiko said. “He’s a good friend of mine.”

Futaba nodded. “He lives upstairs here. You should meet him before you meet anyone else at that stupid school.”

“Futaba’s his cheering section,” Keiko chuckled.

“We all need one of those,” Shiomi laughed.

Keiko thought about Ren’s file a little further. ‘He could stand to be a little less obvious, or at the very least he could stand to be less like a mid-90’s harem anime protagonist.’ She immediately thought to check the rest of the Phantom Thieves.

“Here’s my girlfriend,” Keiko said. “Might as well tell you so you don’t just try and guess.”

Shiomi leaned over and read the bio and stopped at the name.

“Ha. I also dated our Student Council President,” She chuckled. “A lot of people didn’t like that.”

_Makoto Niijima, 18. Shujin’s finest. Student Council President. Reliable, pays attention in class, avoids conflict. Has shown a weariness around staff and a willingness to stand up for herself, but I’d be ignorant to believe that’s not a result of me pushing more on her plate than she can handle. Worrisome friendship with Miyahara and Amamiya, but her behavior and grades have not been affected._

“I can’t believe he has files on every student like this,” Shiomi groaned. “I honestly can’t believe the Phantom Thieves were more important to him than keeping his school safe.”

Keiko sighed. “Yep. Want to see my file?”

“Like yours wasn’t the first one I checked,” Shiomi grinned in a way that reminded her of Ren. 

_Keiko Miyahara, 16. Good student. Doesn’t miss a thing, unfortunately. Runs the student newspaper. Wasn’t all that much of a problem until Niijima and Yoshizawa took interest in her operation. Now has a full staff with the school under a microscope. Will continue to be a problem unless something can be done, especially as her star grows. TV appearances have led to probes accusing Shujin of playing a role in Kamoshida’s exploits and the death of two students. If she were to probe more, I worry what she may find._

“Given what we’re seeing here, doesn’t the school deserve to be under the microscope?” Shiomi directed the question at Keiko, who shrugged.

“Here’s the worst ones, to me,” Keiko said. She turned to pages for Kat Suzuki and Kana Hasegawa.

_Katsuo “Kat” Suzuki, 17. Deceased. Good grades, talented volleyball player, not much else going on in that brain. Had to be taken care of after an encounter with Kamoshida._

_Kana Hasegawa. 16. Deceased. Above-average student and star volleyball player. Kamoshida’s favorite until she tried to come forward._

“Taken _care_ of?” Shiomi gasped. “What the actual fuck? I knew they died but-”

“And their bios are short,” Futaba said. “Like they were important enough to have killed but not important enough to treat like people.”

They continued going through name after name, including each of the Phantom Thieves and every member of her newspaper staff. The news staff didn’t have much on it, luckily. Kobayakawa hadn’t yet gotten to creating pages for Kaori and Mizuki, and his analysis of Shinya pertained only to volleyball, which he seemed to have no interest in despite the school’s pushing. Ryuji and Ann were labeled as too stupid to be Phantom Thieves, which Keiko had to laugh at. ‘There’s different kinds of intelligence than booksmart,’ Keiko thought. Ann and Ryuji were both great examples of that. ‘Ryuji’s stable. His behavior might be chaotic, but he knows how to handle difficult situations.’ She thought about Ann. ‘She might seem like a ditz on occasion, but that’s only when she’s trying too hard. Her and Ryuji have a lot in common. It makes sense that Shiho is so taken with Ryuji.’

“There’s a note at the end of this,” Shiomi said. “It’s why I initially gave you the binder.”

_To whomever finds this file:_

_I work for a man named Masayoshi Shido. These files are my contingency plan in case he decides he no longer needs my services, which is beginning to look more and more likely in the coming days. I refuse to believe I am expendable when my death could bring down his whole operation._

_To everyone who worked to destabilize Shujin Academy within the last year:_

_I hope your efforts have made you happy. It may seem self important to claim that Shujin was playing a pivotal role returning Japan to its former glory. I wish you a miserable life. While you continue to play morality police and virtue signal about the crimes committed by my benefactor, myself, Suguru Kamoshida, and others, you continue to ignore the ends for which we were working. The days of Japan as a world power shall one day soon return should you allow their work to continue._

_To Masayoshi Shido:_

_Every single step I’ve taken since we met has been done in your name. I gave up everything I had for your goal. To discover I was nothing more than a playing card, something you could throw away at a moment’s notice, was the most jarring and miserable day of my life. I so badly want to live in a world that fits your vision._

_Signed,_

_Saburou Kobayakawa_

Keiko winced. “That’s cultier than I imagined.” 

“Super culty,” Futaba agreed. 

“So, you’re going to put a story on all this together, right?” Shiomi had a mischievous look in her eye. “God, I’m going to have such a mess to clean up when you’re done.”

“That’s what she said!” Futaba laughed like she told the funniest joke in the world, and Shiomi laughed just as hard. 

Things finally calmed down after a short while.

Shiomi was the first to say something that wasn’t nonsense. “Speaking of, did Akechi mention you’re a Shirogane earlier?”

Keiko sighed. “He did.”

“You think that would be bigger news,” Shiomi said. “I mean, everything else about you uncovering Shujin’s mess starts to make sense.”

“‘Yer a wizard, Keiko,” Futaba cackled.

Shiomi chuckled. “It is like that, a little bit.” She took a sip of her coffee. She’d been too busy scarfing down her curry to even look at it. “Sadayo was right. How is this place not the busiest in the city?”

“Nobody comes to Yongen on purpose,” Futaba said. “It’s great.”

Keiko ignored their brief conversation. Shiomi’s immediate willingness to just work with Keiko without any reasons given had her feeling like this was a honey-pot.

‘Nobody just does something,’ Keiko thought. ‘Everyone at that school has an ulterior motive for something. 

She broke from her deliberating. “So, why help me?”

Shiomi shrugged. “The school board wants to get rid of the stink Kamoshida and Kobayakawa left on the school. They already tried to sweep it under the rug and that obviously didn’t work.”

“That can’t be it,” Keiko shook her head. “I’ve sat through those meetings. The only thing they want is a solvent bottom line and a list of alumni they can beg for donations.”

“Hey, I don’t want to badmouth them too much, yet.” Shiomi brushed off the criticism. “They did make the brilliant decision to hire me.”

“There’s got to be another reason,” Keiko said. “If you’re sharing this kind of information outright, you have to have something to gain.”

“You’re really not going to let this go,” Shiomi grumbled. “There’s a lot of reasons, and you probably won’t like most of them.”

“To be fair, she hates pretty much everything besides Makoto,” Futaba said, laughing at her own joke. 

“I just need to know what you want from me before I go any further with this,” Keiko said, putting her metaphorical foot down.

“I don’t want anything from you. I needed an avenue to air their misdeeds and we have a school paper for a reason. Stop looking a gift horse in the mouth.” She grinned. “Besides, there’s like several dozen reasons I wanted this job and you’re only one of them. Is it really that hard to believe Shujin is an attractive location?” 

Keiko took a second to think. Shujin does have some things going for it even beyond the celebrity aspect. ‘A fairly young staff, a strong alumni base, and an overwhelming need for a clean slate are all things that would attract capable principals, I guess.’ “I suppose it’s not _that_ toxic. It gives you a chance to start over with a school that is in desperate need of an overhaul.”

“Exactly,” Shiomi said. “Look, If my answer wasn’t good enough, do you want to call Naoto yourself? She’d be excited to hear from you and if you call her, she can’t get in trouble for calling you.”

“Why would she get in trouble for calling me?”

“I’m not allowed to say,” Shiomi frowned. “I’ll eventually be allowed to say.”

“This secrecy shit just doesn’t work with me,” Keiko said.

“Yeah, me neither.”

Shiomi left shortly after and Futaba went right back to her laptop. 

===

_Evening_

“Do I need to separate you two?” 

Keiko walked into her apartment to find Felicia lecturing Keiko’s mother and Anna to no avail.

“I swear, if the two of you don’t stop, we _will_ discover the humans can hit terminal velocity.” Felicia sounded annoyed.

“Your cat never shuts up,” Aya grumbled. 

“Yeah, your mom doesn’t either,” Anna said, turning around from her seat on the couch. They were watching a movie from what Keiko could tell. Aya sat on the opposite end of the couch, which was probably part of Felicia’s annoyance.

“Have you tried not bickering?”

“They aren’t even bickering about anything important,” Felicia said. “They’re arguing over who gets to cook dinner.”

Keiko was careful not to reply directly to Felicia, instead crouching to give her headpats and a nod to let her know she wasn’t being ignored. 

“What are you even fighting over?”

“It’s stupid,” Anna said. “We both went to make dinner at the same time. I didn’t know when you’d be back, so I wanted to wait.”

“But I’m hungry now,” Aya whined.

“Well, I already ate, so you guys can go ahead and do whatever.”

“See? Your argument wasn’t even necessary!” Felicia sounded vexed. “Where’s Makoto? I can’t deal with these two alone.”

Keiko made it look like she was addressing the room. “Makoto should be back later. Felicia doesn’t like the negative energy you two are putting out.”

“You sound like one of those healing crystal ladies,” Felicia mewed. 

“I’m trying, damn it,” Anna said. 

“I’m back at work tomorrow, so-”

“Like hell you are,” Keiko cut Aya off. “They tried to kidnap you!”

“I can’t just sit inside all the time and do nothing!” Aya complained.

“You don’t really have a choice,” Keiko said, then turned to Anna. “You don’t have a choice either. God damn it, when did I decide to have kids?”

Felicia huffed. “I know cats get a lot of flack but humans honestly have no idea how to stay out of trouble.”

Keiko started to march to her room. Felicia followed.

“I have a phone call to make,” Keiko said. “If you two could keep the arguing to a minimum, I would appreciate it.” 

“Aye aye, captain,” Aya made a mock salute. 

Keiko sat on her bed and stared down at her phone. ‘Hi, I just found out we’re related and what the fuck do you want from me?’ Felicia looked at her in concern but didn’t say anything. Keiko reached over and ran her hand over the cat’s head. “I don’t even know what I’m calling her for.”

“Who are you calling?” Felicia purred through her words, relishing the attention. 

“Nobody,” Keiko said. “I just needed an excuse to get away. I didn’t want to be rude.”

“I’m so glad the only cat I need to be polite to is Morgana,” Felicia mewed. “Humans have too many rules.”

Keiko chuckled. “No kittens, Felicia.”

“Hey! I barely ever think about that.” Felicia hid her face. “Make your stupid phone call.”

“I’m not making the phone call,” Keiko said. “I just want some peace and quiet.”

“Why do you keep looking at your phone, then?” Felicia tilted her head and looked Keiko in the eye.

“Because I’m thinking about it.” She reached for her phone and sent a text message instead. 

**Keiko:** Hey. Didn’t want to call because I have no idea what I’d say.

 **Keiko:** Oh yeah. This is Keiko Miyahara. Or Shirogane, I guess. We’re cousins. I’m on TV tomorrow. They’re going to ask me about it. I thought you deserved a heads up.

Keiko nearly threw her phone across the room when it buzzed just seconds after she hit send.

 **Naoto:** OK THNKS 4 HEADS UP

Her phone buzzed again minutes later.

 **Naoto:** WE SHUD MEET UP NXT TIME IM IN TOKYO

 **Keiko:** We should

 **Keiko:** question tho. Do you always text like that?

 **Naoto:** LIKE WUT

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm more proud of the chapter title than I am of anything else right now. 
> 
> So, everything is crazy and on fire which is why I posted later in the day instead of in the morning. Basically, I've been off work all weekend and we had to change our ISP today because the old one was too expensive. This means I've basically been working on installing a whole new setup because I'm the only person here who knows how to do it and we don't want to pay to have somebody install it for us. Bright side to all this? We have 1 gbps now, which is insane. I didn't realize internet could be this fast.
> 
> Uh, yeah, you're not here to listen to me ramble about my internet troubles. Aya's trip reminds me of my first experience with edibles, where I ate a brownie, thought it tasted funny, found out it had weed in it, and proceeded to have a panic attack for the next several hours. Basically, she does the opposite of that.
> 
> I'm running behind on chapter production, so I don't think there will be a Wednesday chapter because I've got quite a bit to do when I get back to work tomorrow. I'm going to be getting back to IWMDT soon, I'm just trying to set out a plan to do so. I don't want to just sit down and write fluff even though that would be so much fun.


	30. Fair Coverage

_Wednesday, September 28, Morning_

Keiko showered and dressed before Makoto’s alarm went off, thrilled that her insomnia reared its ugly head the morning she was supposed to make a television appearance. She put a lot of effort into making sure she didn’t look as tired as she felt.

Putting on a strong front for the people who attacked her mother was of the essence.

‘Is it really, though?’ Keiko stared into her cereal. ‘I’m a 16-year-old girl. Would anyone blame me for being a mess after a big angry man tried to kidnap my mom?’

It wouldn’t require much acting, Keiko thought. As much as Aya was a pain to put up with, she was still her mom, and she still loved her. Yesterday very well could have been the worst day of her life.

She still reserved that title for the night she woke up to her Persona. ‘No offense, Skadi, but I did almost die in the process of meeting you.’

**“None taken. For the record, I refuse to believe your mother was in any real danger. They’d have been begging you to take her back inside an hour.”**

‘I feel like I like my mom more than everyone else in my life, and I don’t like my mom at all,’ Keiko specifically directed this thought at Skadi. Conversations with her Persona were typically fleeting. Skadi rarely responded to secondary comments.

**“I am thou. Your feelings are my own.”**

‘That’s creepy,’ Keiko thought to herself. 

Makoto’s alarm went off and she joined Keiko in the kitchen twenty minutes later, already in her school uniform and looking ready for the morning. Under Keiko’s tutelage, she cut the time it took her to get ready for school in half. 

“You excited?” Makoto pulled leftovers out of the fridge. She would never join Keiko in her love of sugary cereals. She instead reheated chicken and rice she brought from home and poured herself a cup of coffee because she’s boring.

“Nervous,” Keiko said. “I’m not really sure how to handle this.”

“How do you usually prepare?”

“I wing it,” Keiko said, earning a glare from her girlfriend. “Seriously. I usually go in with a base idea of what I want to say but it’s easier to just bounce off Shinichi. I come off as genuine that way.”

“This situation is a bit delicate to wing it, don’t you think?”

Keiko chuckled. “Remember when I thought my enrollment at Shujin being in jeopardy was a delicate situation?”

Makoto shoveled a bite into her mouth, which dampened her glare. “And you jumped head first into trouble.”

“That’s rich, coming from Miss Let-Me-Confront-A-Mafia-Boss.” 

“Miss Go-On-A-Date-With-The-Guy-That-Wants-To-Kill-Us,” Makoto shot back.

“Hey, that date saved your ass,” Keiko said in mock anger.

Makoto chuckled. “I still don’t understand how you’re so calm facing somebody that’s tried to kill you multiple times.”

Keiko shrugged. “We have a lot in common. We’re nosy, we work in professions that involve heavy investigations and little sleep, and we’ve both tried to kill me multiple times.”

“That’s not funny,” Makoto set down her fork and looked Keiko in the eye.

Keiko knew the pained look well. She tried to play it off. “Shiho would have laughed.”

Makoto’s eyes didn’t leave Keiko’s. “I mean this in the nicest way possible, but if the only person who would have laughed is Shiho, you need help.”

“Maybe I should talk to Dr. Maruki-”

“Can we not joke right now?” Makoto closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting out a sigh. “I can see right through this act.”

Keiko crossed an arm and rubbed her elbow. Her cereal was getting soggy. She drooped her head. “Sorry.”

“I’m not asking for an apology.” Makoto’s gaze demanded Keiko not look away. “Going into TV with this attitude is _not_ going to end well.”

“What do you want me to do?” Keiko snapped. “I can’t just back out, and saying no wasn’t an option. This is all going to come out whether I want it to or not.”

Makoto sighed. “Just go out there, have fun, and be you. You’ll be fine.”

Keiko couldn’t stop from rolling her eyes. “That’s the most cliche advice I’ve ever heard.”

“I’m being serious, though,” Makoto said. “You know Shinichi. He’s not out there to make you uncomfortable. He’s there to ask you about an attempted kidnapping. You’re a victim. How do you normally talk to victims?”

Keiko didn’t respond immediately. She ate a spoonful of her soggy cereal instead and nearly choked on it. 

Makoto chuckled. “That’s what you get for avoiding my question.”

“I just-” Keiko stammered. “I know I need to talk about it. I have to trust Shinichi.”

“Hey, think how scared he has to be,” Makoto said. “If he spurns one of the few people his daughter will open up to, he’ll never forgive himself. You’ve got more leverage than you think.”

“That’s horrible, Mako,” Keiko frowned. “I would never hold that above either of them.”

“You don’t have to,” Makoto shrugged. “They’ll do it for you.”

Keiko gasped. “I’ve created a monster.”

“You’ve taught me a lot,” Makoto grinned. “But I’m sure there’s more you haven’t taught me. I’m not concerned. You’re going to do great.”

Keiko finished her cereal and stood up, heading toward the door. “You ever think about how lucky we are?”

“It’s what I think about whenever I have a few free seconds,” Makoto nodded. “To think you hated me just five months ago.”

“Yeah,” Keiko knew Makoto couldn’t see her smile. “I’ll have to think about that some more. Thanks, Mako.”

“I love you, Keiko.”

“Love you more.”

“You are absolutely not starting that,” Makoto said sternly. 

Keiko turned around, grinning ear to ear. “Fine. I’ll just assume that means I’m right, then.”

“You’re the worst. I no longer consider either of us lucky,” Makoto said in obvious sarcasm. 

She followed Keiko to the door and pulled her shoulder so she’d turn around. 

They kissed.

“Good luck, babe,” Makoto said.

“Not sure I need it now.” Keiko felt a whole lot better. 

===

Entering the pre-show interview with the idea that nothing could possibly go worse than her mother kidnapped might seem pessimistic to some, but Keiko couldn’t help but feel relieved. Okumura soiled his own name faster than Keiko or the Phantom Thieves could have. Futaba called it an “any percent speed-run” that the Phantom Thieves would never be able to beat. Keiko had to agree with that. 

Haru was torn between thrilled she no longer had to marry Sugimura and terrified that her father was so far gone that he didn’t think anything of kidnapping somebody’s parent. Keiko assumed they couldn’t get her with a mental shutdown so they looked for other options. ‘I wish Okumura’s damning email was more specific,’ Keiko thought. ‘I need a concrete connection between Kobayakawa, Shido, Akechi and Okumura.’ 

‘If I could bottle whatever Makoto put in that pep-talk I’d be a billionaire.’ Shinichi’s assistant summoned Keiko from the green room to Shinichi’s office, breaking her from her thoughts. Keiko stood up wordlessly and followed her. Shinichi sat at his desk looking less-than-happy.

“Good morning,” he greeted as Keiko took a seat across from him. 

“How’s it going?”

“Been better,” Shinichi frowned. It didn’t suit him. “I don't think we'll have as much fun today. I’m so sorry about what happened to your mother. That’s genuinely my worst nightmare and why I got into doing talk shows instead of hard reporting.”

Keiko nodded. “You had the twins to worry about. It makes sense.”

He nodded and looked down at a piece of paper on his desk.

“Did you ever-” Keiko paused to reword her question. “Have you ever had a story where you felt in over your head?”

“Years ago,” Shinichi said. “I wasn’t in Tokyo at the time.” He coughed and didn’t continue his story. 

Keiko gripped her chair to hide her nerves. “What happened?”

“I don’t talk about it much. The girls weren’t born yet.” Shinichi didn’t give off the vibe that he was uncomfortable but he did fidget with a pen in his hands. “I’d gotten a job at a newspaper in Iwatodai to be with my wife. She was working on a project for Kirijo Group at the time. There were more details than I could report and given my proximity to somebody actually working on the project, I had to be careful not to report anything that would put her in danger.”

“That’s such a mess,” Keiko said. ‘And so similar to me it’s not even funny,’ Keiko thought. 

“It was stressful, for sure.” Getting him to talk had lightened him up a bit. “Anyway, I was in over my head because I had no idea how to describe what I saw. Kirijo Group was shockingly transparent in admitting their mistakes, but they never could explain the monsters or the explosion.”

“Monsters?” Keiko’s jaw dropped.

Shinichi nodded. “There was a huge explosion, the sky turned green and a dozen or so monsters ran off in every direction. I wasn’t able to follow them, but I wish I would have been able to. Unfortunately, two kids were crossing a bridge with their parents. The blast took the parents, so the story became secondary. I was the only other person on scene.”

“Why were you on scene?”

“There was a fire before the explosion. I was under the impression that I was safe as long as I stood far enough away,” Shinichi chuckled lightly. “That was a lie. Anyway, I did what I could to get the children away from the scene as quickly as I could. They stayed a night with me and ran off the next morning. I contacted the police and they had no luck tracking them down for years. I eventually got a call a year later that they were safe with relatives.”

“That’s terrifying,” Keiko said.

“Yeah. And try writing a story like that on deadline,” Shinichi said. “I know that should have been the least of my concerns, but green sky and monsters? All while trying to keep two children who just lost their mom and dad safe? I was way in over my head. I can sympathize with how you feel, maybe. The situations aren’t the same, but I understand how helpless it feels when your job becomes life-and-death.”

“What happened to the kids?” 

“They were twins,” Shinichi frowned. “The boy, Minato, died some years back. I just helped his sister get a job at Shujin, though. You meet the new principal yet?”

“Principal Shiomi?”

Shinichi nodded. “She reached out a couple weeks ago and asked what I thought of the school. I don’t feel comfortable speaking ill of the dead but if Kobayakawa was still employed, Sumire wouldn’t be enrolled.”

Keiko gave him a nervous look. “Yeah, I can’t blame you for that one. There’s probably something I should warn you about.”

“What’s that?” Shinichi asked.

“There’s another story coming out hopefully next week that you’ll want me on for,” Keiko said. “It’s going to put me in more danger than anything I could have possibly written about Okumura, and it’s important that you distance yourself from it.”

Shinichi raised his eyebrows and leaned back in his seat. “Who are you going after?”

“I’m not saying I don’t trust you but the walls have ears,” Keiko said. “You’ll know when you see the story.”

Shinichi didn’t say anything for a brief moment, then chuckled. “Well, we’ve sufficiently blown through the time we were supposed to use for a pre-show interview.”

“Great,” Keiko grinned. “We’ll wing it.”

===

Tokyo’s considerable cooldown meant Keiko’s plaid uniform pants, turtleneck and blazer would keep her far too warm on stage. She shed the blazer before she left the green room, and couldn’t decide if it was annoying or great that the top she wore in the other world was basically just her school turtleneck color swapped. ‘But it’s a tactical sweater,’ Keiko mused. 

Shinichi’s introduction wasn’t muted even though he wasn’t expecting a fun interview.

“Please welcome back Shujin Academy Gazette’s Keiko Miyahara!” Shinichi’s voice bellowed through the studio and a stage director nudged Keiko onto the stage.

Keiko was careful not to be her typical goofy, smiling self on stage. ‘We can still have fun,’ Keiko thought. ‘But there’s nothing fun about what happened to my mom.’ She sat down and folded her hands in her lap, sitting up straight like she’d gotten sent to the principal’s office. ‘The old principal,’ Keiko thought. ‘Shiomi doesn’t seem the type to just let a student be upset.’

“Keiko-chan,” Shinichi said. “I think I speak for everyone when I say that what happened to your mother is one of the more terrifying stories to come out of Tokyo in a long time.”

“It is scary,” Keiko looked down at her hands, the backs of her fingers suddenly extremely interesting. “There are still a lot of questions I don’t have answers to.”

Shinichi nodded. “We can get to that later. First things first, though. How is your mother doing?”

Keiko gave a small smile and rolled her eyes. “She’s as energetic as ever, but that’s how she always is. Nothing gets to her.” Keiko chuckled and continued. “Her first question after we made it back was if I got the channel that had Featherman.”

The crowd laughed and Shinichi gave a light chuckle.

“Don’t make fun of her for that,” Keiko addressed the laughter. “My mother’s been going through some deeply personal issues and I need to respect her privacy. The close call kidnapping is the least of her worries.”

Shinichi let the moment breathe. Keiko couldn’t refer to it as a stunned silence from the crowd; there were quiet murmurs similar to Shujin’s lunchroom after Ren first transferred. She didn’t let it last long, given this was live TV. ‘We do have more time to fill than usual, though,’ Keiko thought.

“Do you think there’s a motive behind the attempted kidnapping?” Shinichi’s question came out like he didn’t want to ask it.

Keiko sighed. “That’s what everyone wants to know. I have my own personal feelings toward the matter, obviously, but as far as any investigations, I’m leaving that up to the police.”

Keiko held back some laughter at the surprised gasp from the audience. 

Shinichi was caught just as off guard as the audience. “You’re actually going to step away from a story like this?”

“I’m too close to the story,” Keiko said. “There’s no way I could provide a fair, impartial view of my own mother’s kidnapping so one of my new reporters will be picking up the story. In the end, Okumura got what he wanted. He told me over the phone that there would be consequences for my reporting, and I’ve heard him loud and clear. All evidence shows that police are taking this very seriously, and I have no reason to doubt them. Goro Akechi, the Detective Prince, himself, has guaranteed me that justice will be served.”

“That’s very surprising,” Shinichi’s voice sounded closer to his normal conversation voice than his TV voice, and gone was his usual Hollywood smile. “You two are well-known rivals.”

“As hard as it may be to believe, given the showdowns we’ve had on this very program, Akechi-san and I have a very professional relationship off-camera. Are we friends?” Keiko shook her head. “Not in the least. But there’s a begrudging respect and neither of us would do anything untoward to harm the other. I believe he viewed the kidnapping as validation of my viewpoints.”

“So, you think he’s only taking it personally because he wants to keep thinking you’re wrong?” 

“What? Absolutely not. I think he’s taking it personally because a crime was committed, and while Akechi and I don’t share viewpoints, he isn’t a bad person who would ignore a crime just because it affects his rival.” ‘I’m being such a little shit right now,’ Keiko had to hold a grin. 

Shinichi nodded in understanding. “I have to say, I didn’t have ‘Keiko-chan comes around on the Detective Prince’ on my Miyahara Media Appearance bingo card.” The audience laughed. “Speaking of Miyahara, Ichiko Ohya revealed some interesting information from the police report, notably your mother’s last name,” Shinichi was looking down at a piece of paper on his desk. “I know Shirogane isn’t all that uncommon of a name, but are you related to the original Detective Prince?”

Keiko nodded. “She’s my first cousin. It’s just not something I ever thought was worth mentioning. I’ve met her once or twice back when I was in middle school. To bring up my heritage would have made it look like I was trying to ride her coattails or overshadow her successor even though my goals are inherently different.”

“Understandable,” Shinichi nodded. “Have you been in contact with Naoto? This seems like a case she’d be quick to pick up, given it’s a familial relation.”

“I only texted her briefly to know that she would probably come up on the show today and nothing more. She mentioned we should meet up the next time she’s in Tokyo, but I don’t know when that will be.” Keiko motioned towards a glass of water on the table next to her, silently asking if she could take a drink. Shinichi nodded, so she did. “Sorry, I’m talking way more than I usually do. Anyway, I imagine she’s busy, given her renown.”

“She’s one of the busiest people in law enforcement,” Shinichi smiled. “I’ve been trying to get her on the show for years but she’ll never come on unless she has a case to discuss. She’s quite the enigma.”

Keiko chuckled. “She’s just like her father and I’m just like my mother, according to my grandpa. I’m a talker, always have been and always will be. If I’m snooping, I’ll tell you I’m snooping because without transparency, my chosen career doesn’t exist. Her career has to happen in the shadows because she’s just dealing with criminals. The only court my targets face is the court of public opinion.”

“I think you just wrote the tagline for when some suit gives you a show just like mine,” Shinichi laughed, the audience following suit. They cut to commercial and ushered Keiko back to the green room. Shinichi followed soon after.

“I don’t know how to thank you enough for that,” Shinichi said. “That might be the best segment we’ve ever aired.”

“I’m glad to be part of it,” Keiko said. She looked down into her lap. “I just hope this is all over soon. Thank you for letting me avoid mentioning my mom’s divorce.”

“I didn’t even realize that’s what happened,” Shinichi replied with a small smile. “Now, stop wasting time. You’ve gotta get back to school.”

“Thanks for reminding me,” Keiko rolled her eyes.

“Tell Kotone I said hi.”

===

_Lunchtime_

“Shinichi told me to tell you hi-” Keiko stopped at Shiomi’s door when she noticed Miss Kawakami sitting in a seat reserved in the old days of Kobayakawa’s reign for a student in need of discipline. “Sorry if I interrupted.”

“Not at all,” Shiomi spoke with a mouth full, so it sounded more like “not ah aww.” She finished chewing and gulped her food. Kawakami was eating her own lunch as well, a bento no doubt packed by Sumire. “Sumi should be here in a minute.”

“Is there something going on?” 

Shiomi shoved another bite into her mouth. “I waff-” she swallowed. “I wanted to eat lunch with Sumire but she didn’t want to let Sadayo eat alone-”

“She didn’t want to break tradition,” Sadayo huffed. “She isn’t afraid to leave me alone.”

“She said you won’t eat if she doesn’t make you,” Shiomi narrowed her eyes.

“I’m doing better!” Sadayo protested. “Seriously! I even ate something that wasn’t beef bowl for dinner last night.”

“Oh, did you splurge for ramen?” Keiko walked further into the room and took a seat next to Kawakami. 

Kawakami frowned. “I don’t have to keep giving you a pass to miss my class for TV, you know.”

“Uh, I’d appreciate it if you kept doing it, though,” Shiomi said. “Shinichi’s an old friend.”

“Is he the one who wanted you at Shujin?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. 

Shiomi nodded. “He was the first person to approach me about the job. I was somebody qualified and trustworthy.”

“More than qualified, it seems,” Kawakami said. “Ushimaru’s lesson plan still referred to the moon as ‘a mystery untouched by humans,’ and no, he’s not a moon landing denier. I checked.”

“I’m still surprised he listened,” Shiomi said in between bites. “I assumed he’d rather quit than take orders from a woman.”

“He’s gotta be close to retirement,” Keiko said. “There’s no way he’s giving up a tenure and a pension to make a stand.”

“Who’s making a stand?” Sumire stood at the door. “Sorry I’m late. I had, uh, newspaper stuff.”

“‘Newspaper stuff,’” Keiko snorted. “That excuse works better when I’m not in the room. Where were you really?”

Sumire looked at the floor. “I think I’m within my rights to not answer that question.”

Shiomi laughed and sang. “Sumire and Ren, sitting in a tree-”

“Are you 12?” Kawakami gave her an exasperated look as Sumire blushed furiously. 

Shiomi shrugged. “I’ve known the Yoshizawas since the twins were still tumbling. This is neither the first nor last time I make fun of Sumire.”

Kawakami folded her arms and leaned back in her chair. “That sounds an awful lot like bullying.”

“Hey, the gods took my brother from me so I have to make up for it elsewhere,” Shiomi frowned. “I had a lot of years of great big-sistering left, damn it.”

Sumire brought a hand up and covered her face, shaking her head before changing the subject. “How’d TV go? Dad told me you tore the house down.”

“Are you texting in class, young lady?” Keiko grinned. 

“Like you don’t spend half my class with your head in your phone,” Kawakami mumbled.

Keiko shrugged. “I don’t always have time to write after school. Anyway, yeah. TV went great, I think. It’s nerve wracking.”

“How’s your mom holding up?” Kawakami asked. “I haven’t heard much from her lately.”

“You’re more than welcome to visit us,” Keiko said. “She’s bored out of her mind, so she’d appreciate the company.”

Sumire must’ve been spending too much time around Ren, because she gave a trollish smile. “That’s just Keiko wanting her mom out of her hair for a while.”

The bell chimed and Shiomi ushered them out of her office.

Keiko and Sumire had to go the same direction, so Keiko pulled her off to the side before they hit the stairs. “How’ve you been since…” she trailed off.

Sumire shrugged. “Everyone’s got bigger fish to fry.”

“Sumire, you need to actually talk to us about it-”

“I’ll talk about it when I know what’s going on,” Sumire interrupted. “I’m not having trouble processing my feelings or anything like that. I’m trying to figure out what that place is. Once I know, you’ll be the first person I tell, okay? That’s what matters.”

Keiko took a second to process. “You aren’t going to tell Ren first?”

Sumire rolled her eyes. “I tell him, he tells you. I tell you, you tell him.”

“And you’d rather have an awkward conversation with me than your boyfriend,” Keiko chuckled. “Makes sense.”

Sumire frowned. “I’m worried I cause him more problems than I’m worth.”

“Join the club,” Keiko sighed. “I feel that way all the time.”

===

_Evening_

“So, how, exactly, did I end up with an apartment full of people on a school night?” Felicia jumped from Keiko’s lap to Makoto’s lap to the floor, then to Anna’s lap, then back to the floor. Anna found a laser pointer in her backpack.

“I’m going to catch it,” Felicia said through gritted teeth. “The red dot shall be mine!”

Keiko and Makoto had to stifle a laugh as to not give up Felicia’s vocal nature. It was nice to have plans after they spent their whole afternoon on their homework. An updated Ushimaru lesson plan meant more homework, because he’d be damned if he wasn’t going to make his students as miserable as he was. Every student in the school suffered from Shiomi’s demand for updated lesson plans from every teacher, although a select few were thrilled at the changes. Makoto fell into that category. New topics of study brought the same fire in Makoto that the gym getting a new training dummy or punching bag did. ‘She’s such a fucking dork.’

“When are they getting back?” Anna took her focus off torturing the poor kitty and looked over toward the two girls holding hands on the couch. 

“Any time now,” Keiko sighed. They made plans for Kawakami to come over to watch a recording of Keiko’s appearance on Good Morning Japan. “Mom wanted beer.”

“I can’t believe you let her leave,” Anna said, using the laser pointer to force Felicia back onto Makoto’s lap.

Makoto responded by petting the cat, who immediately shut her down. “I don’t have time, Queen!” Anna laughed at Felicia’s frantic mews. “I must get the red dot!”

“Becky’s trustworthy,” Keiko said. “They’ll be fine.”

The clock ticked 7 p.m. and Keiko looked at the TV. They’d had the NHK news station playing. She wasn’t one to watch much of her news, but it made good background noise while Felicia jumped from lap to lap and furniture to furniture, cursing the evil red dot.

The screen was graced by a familiar face. ‘Wow. They’re really leading the news with Akechi. Wonder what’s going on?’ Keiko and Makoto shared nervous looks.

A man with slicked back grey hair and glasses sat behind a desk. Keiko couldn’t imagine having to get so done up just to do her job, then realized the hypocrisy when that’s basically what she had to do every time she appeared on Shinichi’s show.

The man sounded natural despite the fact he was probably reading off of a teleprompter. 

“Earlier today, we had an exclusive interview with The Detective Prince, Goro Akechi,” the man said. “We now go to the recording of that interview.”

Akechi sat in the warmly lit room staged like an old inn they did all pre-recorded interviews in. A younger reporter, a girl not much older than college-aged, asked him directly about Keiko’s comments from earlier today.

“Miyahara mentioned earlier this morning on Good Morning Japan that you personally guaranteed Okumura would be brought to justice.”

Akechi nodded slowly. “I did, because he will have to atone for his crimes. A man resorting to a crime as heinous as kidnapping in an effort to silence a reporter is surely guilty of things greater than just union busting and worker mistreatment. Charges have been filed against both Sugimura and Okumura for conspiracy to commit a kidnapping and more things are being uncovered as the investigation ensues. This is not where this story ends.”

The reporter had a stern look as the camera panned back towards her. “Why take this so personally?”

Akechi frowned. “As hard as it may be for the public to believe, Miyahara-san and I have a lot of respect for each other. Ideals may not always align but in the end, our goals are the same. We both want to see those who make the world a worse place held accountable. In this particular instance, inaction by the police would validate her viewpoint that the police often do more harm than good.”

“The Phantom Thieves website lists Kunikazu Okumura as their most requested target. If they are somehow able to draw a confession, would the police accept it knowing it came at the hands of the Phantom Thieves?”

Akechi didn’t answer immediately. His mouth opened like he was going to speak, then he closed it and blinked hard. He’d become more uncomfortable on TV the last few times Keiko had seen him. “I still don’t know their methods, but we have yet to see them go after somebody who wasn’t overwhelmingly guilty. It’s a major failing of the police that we investigated the Phantom Thieves heavily while Miyahara was interviewing witnesses and victims involved in the Kamoshida case. To this day, she hasn’t let up on that investigation while the police made every effort to ignore his crimes. I fear we are going to lose the faith of the public. A resource-less high schooler uncovered enough evidence for a conviction while the police conducted a self-serving investigation. That’s quite the embarrassment.”

“Have you voiced these criticisms to your superiors?”

Akechi didn’t need to think about his next answer. “If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t be saying them on live television. I was soundly ignored and assigned a different case.”

The reporter pivoted to a fairly cliche question. “What’s next?”

“What I’d like to say is I’ll solve the Okumura case,” Akechi’s voice started to get raspy. “But I think it will be more complicated than that, ultimately. The Phantom Thieves’ involvement will always create controversy whether their actions are just or not, and it should be fairly obvious that Miyahara’s involvement will draw their action.”

“I don’t have much more time,” the reporter said, holding a finger to her earpiece. “But I have to ask, what do you mean?”

“Miyahara is the only person to give them real, fair coverage from the very beginning,” Akechi said. “Instead of capitalizing on the terror, she followed their trail to provide concrete evidence and give credence to their work. They’re credible because she’s credible, and I don’t doubt there’s loyalty because of that. That’s not something people should look down on. I wouldn’t be the person I am today if Shinichi Yoshizawa hadn’t given me a platform so I always jump at the chance to appear when he asks. The Phantom Thieves would be stupid if they didn’t feel a similar loyalty to Keiko Miyahara.”

The news cut back to the anchor who started droning about how “electric” the interview was, gushing over Akechi. Anna flicked off the TV and sighed. “Glad to see he opened his eyes but his voice still makes me want to shove needles through my eardrums.”

“That’s a visual,” Keiko mumbled. 

“What did we just watch?” Makoto said, dumbstruck. 

“I kind of feel like I won,” Keiko said, leaning her head on Makoto’s shoulder. And for a few brief seconds, she truly thought she had won. If Akechi, of all people, could admit she was right, there’s bound to be thousands of others coming around.

Then her phone rang, and she forgot about the hollow victory of the man who tried to kill her multiple times singing her praises. 

“What’s up, mom?”

“We’re all safe,” Aya said in a hushed voice. “We ran into that doctor and the kid you hang around with at the store-” her voice picked up. “Thank you, officer. Yes, Sadayo and I can get her home.” She spoke back into the phone. “We’re bringing Rio back with us. Takemi is staying on scene to tend to the injured.”

“Mom.” Keiko lowered her voice. “What happened?”

“A car slammed through the front of a 7-11,” Aya said. “Cops are saying it’s a planned robbery. I’ll be upstairs in a minute. Becky and I will explain more than. Ouch!” Keiko could hear a smack. “We’re not to call her Becky anymore.”

“Yeah, I don’t see that stopping any time soon,” Keiko said. “I’m glad you’re safe.”

“Love you, kid,” Aya said.

Keiko paused. It had been so long since she’d heard that from her mom. “Love you, too, Mom.”

Aya, Sadayo and Rio walked in while Keiko relayed everything that had happened to Makoto and Anna. Keiko’s arms were not long enough or strong enough to pull all three of them into the hug she attempted. 

Then she stuck a finger in her mother’s nose. “You are never allowed to leave the apartment again.”

“Uh, if we’re being fair, I was sitting in the safety of my own home when they tried to kidnap me.”

Keiko groaned and trudged back to the couch. “Come on. Sit.”

Rio pulled over a chair each for herself and Kawakami and Aya sat in the free spot normally reserved for Felicia. She was busy chasing after the laser pointer again, narrating as though it were her greatest enemy. 

“There is no escape, evil red dot!” Felicia pounced on the coffee table, nearly spilling Makoto’s Coke.

“Felicia!” Makoto shouted at the cat.

Felicia dipped her head and slowly crawled into Keiko’s lap. “I just wanted the dot…” Keiko played good cop, letting Felicia snuggle while Makoto gave her the side-eye. 

“So, what happened?” Anna tucked the laser pointer back into her pocket. 

“I really have to know,” Keiko said. “Somebody slammed their car into the 7-11?”

“Straight through the front,” Rio said. “Shit looked like a warzone.” 

Keiko hadn’t seen Rio in weeks. She looked like she was feeling better, her cheeks a bit fuller and her coloring was better. Whatever she was doing instead of school was working. ‘It probably just helps having Dr. Takemi around all day.’

“We were in the back of the store and they already had the driver out of the car and in an ambulance by the time firefighters could usher us out,” Kawakami said. 

“Any evidence of foul play?”

Rio shook her head and shifted her eyes between Keiko’s mother, Kawakami and Anna. 

Keiko sighed. “You end up getting anything to drink?”

“No,” Aya made a face. “The crash happened before we could pay-”

“I, uh, might’ve grabbed a couple bottles on my way out,” Kawakami winced as she spoke as if embarrassed. She pulled out two small-ish bottles of whiskey from under her shirt. “I was planning on paying!”

Makoto started to talk but Keiko cut her off, not allowing her to admonish the teacher for her thievery. 

“Why don’t you guys go to your room?” Keiko turned towards Anna. “You, too. We can’t have you being a bad influence by drinking in front of impressionable young girls-”

“I literally-” Anna looked at the teacher. “Nevermind.”

“That’s Keiko code for ‘get the fuck out of my room,’” Aya said. “I can take a hint. No threesomes.”

“What the fuck, Mom?” Keiko shook her head and glared at her mother. 

The three older women left the room.

Rio continued once they were out of an earshot. “Tae stayed behind to search for tar. The driver seemed pretty zonked but he very well could have had a concussion.”

“He didn’t die?”

Rio shook her head. “He walked away. Like I said, it’s likely a concussion.”

“And we’re sure this isn’t a-”

“I’m almost positive it’s not a mental shutdown,” Rio said. “But we’ll have to hear from Tae to confirm that. The cops were being pretty cagey. I won’t be surprised if they boot her off the scene soon.”

“The cops are always cagey. The ones that aren’t get stuck on desk duty,” Keiko shrugged. “It’s why my information requests always turn back more information than I could get from a conversation with a street cop. If you fucked up enough to get stuck at the desk, you’re probably a pretty good cop.”

“Huh,” Makoto said. “My dad bitched about getting stuck on desk duty at least twice a week.”

“That’s somehow not shocking,” Keiko said. “He’s got two great daughters-”

Rio interjected. “Can you not flirt right now?”

“I wasn’t flirting,” Keiko frowned. 

“She’s a fuckin’ buzzkill,” Felicia mewed, jumping into Rio’s lap. 

Rio didn’t quite know what to do with a cat on her lap, so she held her hands to her sides.

“Pet me, damn it!” Felicia mewed again and drew laughs from Makoto and Keiko. Rio looked at them funny. “Give me pets,” Felicia whined. “You’ll feel better.”

“She wants you to pet her,” Keiko said. “She’s a good kitty, I promise. She wouldn’t hurt anyone.”

“Except Sae,” Felicia mewed. “And Anna. I’m pretty sure she’s in cahoots with that red dot guy.”

Keiko and Makoto had to hold in uproarious laughter, and Tae returned soon after. She confirmed that the accident was indeed an accident. She found no evidence of tar and the cops confirmed the driver’s brakes went out.

Keiko turned in for the night while Makoto went home. Sae was no longer comfortable staying in their apartment alone. 

===

_Friday, September 30, After School_

“Where the fuck did September go?”

Keiko wasn’t sure who in the newsroom said it but she nodded in agreement. The month somehow felt like it flew by and dragged simultaneously..

“Mizuki, you really shouldn’t use that kind of language,” Kaori admonished her step sister. 

“Who’s gonna tell mom? Hey, Chief, are you gonna rat me out for swearing?”

Keiko raised an eyebrow. “Who’s chief?”

“You are,” Mizuki said. “Unless Prez is taking over editing duties.”

“God forbid,” Keiko chuckled. “I’d be the world’s biggest hypocrite if I ratted anyone out for swearing. Just watch out for Sakamoto. He’ll have you running laps around the school.”

“It’s only fair,” Mizuki shrugged. “He’s been running through my mind all day.”

“Mizuki!” Kaori turned around from her computer and glared at her step sister, her cheeks red as a rose. “You can’t talk like that in public!”

“Why not? Ryuji-senpai’s a babe and I’m tired of pretending he’s not just because some people think he’s a delinquent.”

“He’s got a girlfriend,” Keiko laughed. She couldn’t imagine what Shiho’s reaction to this conversation would be. “But I’m glad to see he’s got a fan club. Ryuji’s a good guy.” 

“Eh,” Mizuki shrugged. “He seems like he’s into the sporty type anyway. I gotta get me someone who won’t wear me out.”

“I’ll tell ya, get you somebody that will wear you out,” Keiko said, thinking of Makoto. ‘Every time I hit a wall, she’s there to pick me up.’ “You’ll go further than you ever planned.”

“Aw!” Mizuki clearly had no intention of leaving despite already turning in her story. “Keiko’s got a boyfriend.”

Keiko choked on her own spit and started laughing. “Absolutely not.”

“Oh, come on,” Mizuki said. “You’re obviously hiding something. Look how red your face got!”

“Mizuki,” Kaori said, trying and failing to raise her voice. “You need to mind your own business.”

“It’s not that big of a deal,” Keiko said, turning around in her chair. She needed a distraction from her rundown on Kobayakawa’s files anyway. “I have a girlfriend, not a boyfriend.”

“Oh.” Mizuki frowned. “Does that mean you aren’t dating Ren?”

“What?” Keiko shook her head. “Absolutely not.”

“Huh. What’s the rules on inner-newsroom dating?”

“He’s got a girlfriend,” Keiko huffed. “Him and Sumire are an item. Have been for awhile.”

“Damn it,” Mizuki said. “All the good men are taken.”

“You could ask Shinya-” Kaori shrank her stepsister’s glare and Keiko stepped in.

“What about Yuuki?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. “Like, I’m probably not the expert on men but he’s really easy to work with, extremely organized, and very talented.”

Mizuki returned Keiko’s look. “I don’t really know him at all. I’m looking for a boyfriend, not a campaign manager.”

“He’d make a great campaign manager, though,” Keiko chuckled. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have far too much fun writing the TV scenes. I should write a fic of just TV scenes. Seriously, they're the best. 
> 
> Let me know what you think! I've been working my way toward the end of this fic and I swear, the ending has changed a million times. Just a heads up, if you haven't read Trust Me, I Want Me Dead, Too, I have to recommend you do so because it will be essential for the ending to make sense. I have decided that I will write an alternate ending for this fic that doesn't involve the severe amounts of multiverse fuckery from the other for those who, like me, would prefer a more satisfying ending.
> 
> Basically, that means Covering the Phantom Thieves is going to be much longer than I anticipated, and the ending connecting it to IWMDT will be posted as a separate one-shot. I just couldn't do my girl Keiko like that.


	31. The Moon

_Saturday, October 1, After School_

Keiko’s phone rang and rang and rang as she shot a disappointed look over at Makoto. 

“Did you really have to tell Sae?” Keiko didn’t bother looking at Makoto. Going to Sae had to have been her last resort. They’d been fighting nearly constantly since Keiko made it known she planned on implicating Shido in the mental shutdown cases.

“Do you think I _wanted_ to tell Sae?” Makoto sat on her side of the bed, red eyes glaring at Keiko. Felicia had successfully been locked out of the room and was now scratching at the door. “Somebody has to talk you out of this, and you never listen to me.”

“Mako, the story is already written,” Keiko said, pulling herself up so she was sitting instead of leaning. “This isn't something I can sit on. I have concrete evidence and it needs to come forward immediately.”

“Sae specifically told you to avoid that man!” Makoto never raised her voice like this. 

“I won’t die,” Keiko said, keeping her cool. “I’ll be fine. I promise, that story will print Monday morning, and after school we can come home and I’ll do that thing you like-”

“This is _not_ the time, Keiko,” Makoto gritted her teeth. “You’re attacking the most popular politician in the country unprovoked.”

“It’s not an unprovoked attack. He’s committing crimes and he’s been caught. The police won’t do anything.” Keiko shrugged. “He’s a scumbag, as if the bald head, transition glasses and single earring weren’t enough of a tell. People should know he’s a murderer before he can start campaigning. If the story comes out and everyone around me has a mental shutdown, then it’s obvious that he’s the culprit. He’s going to ignore me, just watch.”

Makoto grunted. “So, you’re just sacrificing the lives of those around you on a whim?”

“He’s not going to do anything, Mako.” Keiko had already dwelled on that thread for a while. 

“You’re taking down a suspect in the mental shutdown cases and not telling Ren?” Makoto’s red eyes pierced Keiko’s soul. “Some friend you are.”

“I’m a friend, not an accomplice,” Keiko shot back.

“What about Futaba?” Makoto narrowed her eyes. “She’ll go catatonic when she finds out what you’re doing.”

“She’s… not speaking to me right now.” 

“What?”

“She heard my conversations with Principal Shiomi. She heard all of them.” Keiko chewed the inside of her lip. “She asked me to leave this one be until we could be better protected.”

“Keiko, she’s already lost her mother-”

“And now nobody is going to lose their mother to a mental shutdown again,” Keiko said. “The police will act on this evidence and Japan will be safe again. No more subway accidents. No more people passing out in front of cars.”

Makoto closed her eyes and counted quietly to herself.

“We’re never going to be safer than we are right now,” Keiko said. “I know Ren understands, but I don’t think you do. This whole thing is a ticking time bomb.”

Makoto didn’t reply immediately. 

“There’s nothing stopping us from walking away, you know,” Makoto said. “We can go back to being normal kids. You might get a good night’s rest again. We’d just be that weird lesbian couple that has long conversations with their cat. That’s more common than you’d think.” She leaned over the bed into Keiko’s arms. 

“Mako,” Keiko cleared her throat. “They killed your dad. They killed Futaba’s mom. They tried to kidnap my mom. They won’t stop, and you know it. Maybe the Phantom Thieves get to him eventually, but I can get to him right now.”

“I don’t know what I’ll do if anything happens to you,” Makoto choked back a sob. 

“Nothing will happen. I’ve got this.” Keiko chuckled lightly. “Now let me answer the phone because somebody has to explain to your sister why I have a deathwish.”

===

_Evening_

Keiko didn’t plan on having people over that night. She wanted to have a relaxing Saturday night with her mom and her girlfriend. 

Unfortunately, Makoto warned the rest of the Phantom Thieves and Sumire _and_ Hifumi that she was going to do something exceedingly stupid that might cost her life, so now Keiko was having a party.

It even drew Futaba out of the house. 

‘At least Ren offered to cook,’ Keiko thought. She planned on cooking and the closer it got to the evening the more obvious it became that it wasn’t happening. Makoto monopolized her afternoon, partially out of a need for comfort and partially in an attempt to convince Keiko she didn’t need to move forward with the story. Keiko played along with the knowledge that Makoto needed the comfort more than she did.

It was nice to hear Futaba complain about video games instead of Keiko for a change.

“You’ve had Smash for over a month and you’re still using up to jump?” Futaba wiped the floor with Keiko, Ryuji and Ren in record time three times in a row. On the fourth attempt, she started telling them how to play, which Keiko found more infuriating than helpful. 

‘More infuriating than helpful is the theme of tonight,’ Keiko sighed. She left her controller in Hifumi’s hands and took a walk to the kitchen, where Ann, Shiho and Anna were holding court. Shiho snorted and laughed over something Keiko didn’t hear, and both blondes gave her startlingly similar angry looks. 

“What’d Shiho do?” Keiko walked up and joined her in her laughter, although she was more getting a chuckle out of Ann and Anna’s similarities. 

“I asked if Anna could tell Ann her future,” Shiho chuckled.

“We don’t look that much alike,” Ann protested. “Seriously, we don’t!”

“We do,” Anna rolled her eyes. “You know how many times I’ve been asked if I’m that famous model?”

“I’m famous?”

“Famous enough,” Anna shrugged. “You stick out. It’s not always a bad thing.”

“Just usually a bad thing,” Shiho said. “I’m surprised Yusuke hasn’t asked to paint you together or something.”

“He has,” Anna covered her face. “I told him only if I can paint him naked.”

“Oh,” Keiko winced. “Don’t call Yusuke’s bluff.”

“I stopped him before he got his pants off, luckily,” Anna took a drink out of a can Keiko didn’t recognize. “This beer sucks.”

Keiko opted not to drink that night, but the older people all had beverages. Anna and Aya split a case of something called Hamm’s, and Sae was deep enough into a bottle of Jack Daniels that she’d probably need to sleep on the couch. Dr. Takemi and Rio would be over later, Ren informed Keiko. 

Keiko jumped when Sumire wrapped her in a tight hug from behind. She must’ve just got there.

“Uh, you’re hurting me,” Keiko winced. She knew from experience that Sumire was much stronger than she looked. 

Sae walked over and laughed. Sumire wasn’t letting go, but Keiko couldn’t hear the muffled words.

“Maybe if she hurts you, we can go through your stuff and keep you from getting yourself killed. Futaba shouted from across the room, still not feeling challenged enough by her opponents. “She keeps hard copies. Who uses actual paper?”

“I do, to protect my work from people like you,” Keiko said. “Nosey ass.”

“Hey, if putting my nose in your ass is enough to get you to-”

“Finish that sentence, Futaba,” Makoto narrowed her eyes.

“I think it’s in my best interest that I don’t,” Futaba’s eyes shifted. 

Everyone shifted back towards the sitting area near the TV and back toward Futaba’s long reign of dominance.

Sae pulled Keiko out of the room and into her bedroom quietly. Keiko noticed Felicia following covertly. It was probably best to have backup.

Keiko sat on the edge of her bed while Sae took her desk chair. 

“What are you thinking?”

“That it’s nice to have friends-”

Sae closed her eyes and took a deep breath. 

“That’s not what you’re asking. Okay.” Keiko said. “I suppose I owe you an explanation.”

“You don’t owe me anything,” Sae said. “I’d like to think you trust me.”

“I do, but-”

“But you didn’t tell me your plans because you knew I’d try to talk you out of them.” Sae leaned back and folded her arms across her chest. “Do you know how rare it is for Makoto to call me in tears?”

“She’s scared,” Keiko said. “I get it. I’m a bit scared, too, but this really isn’t any more dangerous than what I’ve been dabbling in.”

Sae leaned forward and looked at the ground.

“I don’t know what to tell you,” Sae said. “I know what I hear around the SIU. They’re searching for a reason to take you out.”

“That’s not new,” Keiko replied. “I haven’t done anything illegal.”

“Can you please just listen to me? You’re endangering yourself, your mother, all of your friends, and most importantly, my sister.” Sae leaned back again and took a deep breath. “I’m not asking you to leave everything behind and let this be. I’m asking you to wait. Let me figure it out. We can bring charges and prosecute.”

“And when the police don’t cooperate? When witnesses start dropping dead because we don’t have a good way to get rid of Akechi?”

Keiko’s questions hung in the air.

“I need a drink.”

===

_Sunday, October 2, Afternoon_

“Hey, Yuuki,” Keiko walks into the newspaper office. 

“Keiko, hey. Didn’t realize you were coming in today.” Yuuki took to page design well enough that Keiko had most Sundays off.

“I’m actually here to talk to you,” Keiko said. “That story on the front page is pretty jarring, and I thought you should be prepared-”

“The page is already designed and ready to go,” Yuuki said. “It’s inspiring.”

“You aren’t scared of it?”

“Why would I be scared?” Yuuki shrugged. “I don’t see how this is any more dangerous than running the Phansite. If anyone asks, I’m just a lowly page designer. I don’t proofread, I don’t write and sometimes I take photos.”

Keiko sighed. “God, I wish more people viewed it that way.” Keiko sat at her desk and had another thought. “Hey, what do you think of Mizuki?”

“What?” Yuuki turned away from his computer. “Why do you ask?”

Keiko chuckled. “Just curious. She asked about you the other day.” It was a partial lie. She just didn’t sound repulsed when Yuuki got brought up.

Yuuki shrugged. “I like her earrings.”

“You should tell her that,” Keiko paused. “Or something. I don’t know. You should try and be friends with her.”

“Whatever you say, Chief.”

“Is that going to become a thing? Because I kind of like it,” Keiko smiled. ‘That’s a much better codename than Nap.’

===

_Monday, October 3, Morning_

_**Kobayakawa implicates Shido in posthumous release of files** _

**__** _Former Shujin Principal Saburou Kobayakawa has implicated Masayoshi Shido in his murder via mental shutdown in files found among his belongings._

_Kobayakawa outlined his relationship with Shido in the letter, although some key details were omitted._

_“I work for a man named Masayoshi Shido,” Kobayakawa wrote in the letter. “These files are my contingency plan in case he decides he no longer needs my services, which is beginning to look more and more likely in the coming days.”_

_The letter is labeled Sept. 5, just days before Kobayakawa was found dead after falling into oncoming traffic._

_A passerby, Dr. Tae Takemi, said the black, tar-like substance surrounding the body is a symptom of a mental shutdown. Her expertise comes not from study, but from the death of her then roommate, Ayumi Nakagawa. Nakagawa passed in 2013, and is one of the first known cases of a mental shutdown._

_Confirmed in the files accompanying the letter are the murders of Katsuo Suzuki and Kana Hasegawa. Each Shujin student, barring a few first-years, had a file with an accompanying summary along with an analysis on how likely they were to be a Phantom Thief._

_“Katsuo Suzuki. 17. Deceased. Good grades, talented volleyball player, not much else going on in that brain. Had to be taken care of after an encounter with Kamoshida.”_

_Hasegawa’s summary was similar._

_“Kaname Hasegawa. 16. Deceased. Above-average student and star volleyball player. Kamoshida’s favorite until she tried to come forward.”_

_Principal Shiomi called the files damning evidence against Kobayakawa and a stain on his memory, using Rio Fujinami’s summary as an example._

_“I told Kamoshida multiple times that admitting her into the school was a terrible idea and he demanded it,” Kobayakawa wrote. “Suguru was enamored with his perversions and claimed her enrollment was a personal matter.”_

_Kobayakawa acknowledged Fujinami’s role in Kamoshida’s eventual confession, arrest and conviction._

_“Not only have his crimes been made known, his connections to the mental shutdown cases have made him and me a liability,” Kobayakawa said. “I do not know much of Fujinami, but her unfortunate involvement in this ordeal may be our undoing.”_

_Principal Shiomi has already been in contact with the police to request further investigation into the matter, although she has yet to hear back as of Sunday evening._

_Kobayakawa’s dedication to Shido led him to write a message to those who “worked to destabilize Shujin Academy.”_

_“I hope your efforts have made you happy,” Kobayakawa wrote. “It may seem self important to claim that Shujin was playing a pivotal role returning Japan to its former glory. I wish you a miserable life. While you continue to play morality police and virtue signal about the crimes committed by my benefactor, myself, Suguru Kamoshida, and others, you continue to ignore the ends for which we were working. The days of Japan as a world power shall one day soon return should you allow their work to continue.”_

_He also wrote to Shido._

_“Every single step I’ve taken since we met has been done in your name,” Kobayakawa wrote. “I gave up everything I had for your goal. To discover I was nothing more than a playing card, something you could throw away at a moment’s notice, was the most jarring and miserable day of my life. I so badly want to live in a world that fits your vision.”_

_Any student who wishes to see their file should visit the newspaper office and submit a request. For transparency’s sake, here’s a copy of my file: “Keiko Miyahara, 16. Good student. Doesn’t miss a thing, unfortunately. Runs the student newspaper. Wasn’t all that much of a problem until Niijima and Yoshizawa took interest in her operation. Now has a full staff with the school under a microscope. Will continue to be a problem unless something can be done, especially as her star grows. TV appearances have led to probes accusing Shujin of playing a role in Kamoshida’s exploits and the death of two students. If she were to probe more, I worry what she may find.”_

_Most students do not have as much written about them as I do._

===

_After School_

“I hate to say I told you so, Mako, but guys like Shido have bigger fish to fry,” Keiko bragged as they left school and returned to her apartment. The Phantom Thieves sent their calling card to Okumura that morning, so there was a lot going on.

“She does have a point,” Haru said, interjecting herself into their conversation. “It’s always strange how busy my father seems to be. The things you’d expect to be at the forefront of his mind are often quickly forgotten.”

“I don’t feel better,” Makoto said. “It’s too early to act like you’re out of the woods.”

Haru returned with them to Keiko’s apartment. 

“I’m going to be staying with Dr. Takemi for a few days,” Haru said. “I feel it is best to avoid my father for the time being.”

“Gonna get some alone time with Hifumi?” Keiko raised her eyebrows but was met with a deep frown.

“Hifumi’s mother has decided I am no longer a worthy friend and she’s currently grounded,” Haru said. “It’s my fault, really-”

“Your fault she’s homophobic?” Makoto rolled her eyes. “Absolutely not.”

“Oh, no,” Haru grinned. “It’s my fault. We might have done… _it_ in her mother’s bed.”

Keiko burst out laughing. “Fucking incredible.”

“Speaking of doing inappropriate things at the wrong time and place, where’s your mother?” Makoto drew laughs from her friend. Keiko couldn’t help but be just a little proud.

“In her room,” Keiko said. “She’s writing a book.”

“Oh! What about?”

“She likes light novels so much that she decided to start writing them,” Keiko shrugged. “She’s actually a pretty good writer.”

“You actually read her work?” Makoto rolled her eyes. “You’re a much better daughter than she deserves.”

“Hey, our moms liked her, so maybe she’s less of a nuisance than we think,” Haru said with a smile. 

“I mean, she was selling them drugs, so-”

Keiko had a rebuttal, but her phone rang with Private Number reading on the screen.

“Hi, you’ve reached a dead woman,” Keiko chuckled to herself lightly.

“At least you know your place,” a voice spoke back. Keiko expected Shido to have a deep, menacing voice, but he had a shockingly normal voice.

“I’m assuming this is Shido-san,” Keiko said. Makoto and Haru shared looks, then glanced over at Felicia. She was wandering out of Keiko’s bedroom. “Thank you so much for returning my call.”

“I need you to issue a retraction,” Shido said.

“No,” Keiko said, annunciating it like the Bugs Bunny gif she’d send Makoto whenever she texted her to remind her she needed to study.

Shido sighed. “You’ve been nothing but a thorn in my side for months. Issue a retraction. I want it out by tomorrow morning.”

“Heh, sure, okay,” Keiko said. “Tell The Detective Prince I said hi.” She hung up on Shido, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of doing it first.

“Are you sure that was a good idea, Keiko-chan?” Haru sounded concerned. Makoto looked irate.

Keiko shrugged. “Nope. Probably a terrible one, honestly.”

“I thought you sounded cool,” Felicia yawned. “Is anyone else feeling sushi?”

===

_Tuesday, October 4, Morning_

Principal Shiomi looked worse for wear at the school gate that morning. She pulled Keiko into her office without so much as a greeting.

“Did you get a phone call yesterday?” Shiomi didn’t look worried, she just looked tired. 

“From Shido? Yes ma’am,” Keiko said. “He wanted a retraction.”

“That’s expected,” Shiomi frowned. “He threaten you, too?”

Keiko nodded. “This was going to happen sooner or later. I don’t see why I should be all that scared.”

Shiomi nodded in agreement. “I understand that feeling all too well. Something needed to be done. Evil succeeds if good dudes do nothing or something like that.”

“I can’t believe you’re a teacher,” Keiko smiled at the principal. “I seriously can’t thank you enough for all your help.”

“It’s not a problem,” Shiomi smiled. “It’s what I’m here for. This is the first step in healing our school, I think.” “It feels like a completely different place,” Keiko said. “Clubs are coming back, students are being friendlier… It’s been quite a turnaround.”

“The kids really need to be given credit for how quickly they’ve bounced back from last spring,” Shiomi said. “You’re a resilient bunch. The entire student body, I mean.”

“Agreed,” Keiko said. “I’m actually proud to be a Shujin student, for once.”

Shiomi looked like she was about to say something when a voice came over the intercom.

“Keiko Miyahara to the newspaper office.” The voice sounded frantic. It sounded like Yuuki. “I repeat, Keiko Miyahara to the newspaper office.”

“Does he sound like he’s in trouble-”

Keiko bolted out the door before Shiomi finished her sentence. She sprinted toward the practice building, Yuuki’s urgent voice causing her guts to churn. She swung the door open and stepped into the room.

The black-haired, skinny, dorky second year pointed a steel-grey weapon at her, his eyes bleeding black, his words coming out garbled while his body shuttered. Yuuki was fighting back against _something._

“I’ve been waiting so long for this.” Keiko recognized the voice. She heard a bang at the same time a hand reached out, pulling her to the floor. 

The space between her collarbone and her shoulder burned with a pain greater than she knew existed. The world went black.

===

Kotone was careful not to move Keiko’s body. She thought about Yuuki, too, but she had no idea how to handle that. He just tried to kill one of his few friends and he probably doesn’t even know why.

She breathed a sigh of relief as Yuuki gained his faculties back and sat up, but the panic returned when he saw Keiko bleeding out on the floor and the gun on the ground next to him. It was a police model she recognized. Akihiko carried a similar weapon when he was on duty.

“What-”

“You didn’t do this, Yuuki,” Kotone said, then she gestured with her free hand, the other holding an old PE shirt to Keiko’s wound. “Phone. Now.”

She dialed 119. 

“What’s your emergency?”

“I’m at Shujin Academy in Aoyama. I have a student with a gunshot wound just beneath the right collarbone. The gunman was under the influence of a psychotic breakdown.” She looked over at Yuuki, who was hyperventilating in his spot on the floor. 

“Ambulance and police are on the way.”

“Thank you.” Kotone tapped the button to end the call. 

Makoto was the first person to rush over after hearing a gunshot. The office’s remote location made it hard to be a looky-lou, which Kotone was thankful for because it allowed the other teachers to get the school under lockdown. She let Makoto stay while the EMTs did their thing.

Keiko was breathing still, barely.

Yuuki, though? Kotone wouldn’t be surprised if he never recovered.

===

Sae’s heart dropped when a call of shots fired at Shujin Academy came over the scanner. She had no qualms with telling Executive Director Kaida to go fuck himself while she broke every traffic law in the book on her way to the school.

===

Felicia had never felt such a sense of impending doom in her short life. “I should have gone to school with her,” she said out loud. Anna had just woken up for the morning only to plop down on the couch and give the cats snuggles. Felicia thought she could forgive Anna’s traitorous nature since she was so good at snuggling. ‘The red dot guy isn’t _that_ bad.’

“Anna,” Felicia purred as the young woman ran her hand over the cat’s fur. “I need to get to the school.”

“You’re a talkative kitty this morning,” Aya yawned leaving her room.

“Can you please wear a shirt?” Anna rolled her eyes, ignoring Felicia’s pleas.

“Hey, I have a bra on,” Aya shrugged. “That's the most you’re getting out of me if you won’t let me work.”

Felicia jumped down from Anna’s lap and ran for the door, scratching at it like she needed to go outside. “We need to get to the school!”

A call finally came on Aya’s phone. “Hey, Nakano, what’s up?”

Nakano’s voice could be heard from the other line. He must’ve been shouting, Felicia thought. 

“She’s- there’s no way. I’m heading there.” 

Anna picked up the cat as Aya crossed the hall to knock on Dr. Takemi’s door. “Tae, we need a ride. Keiko’s been hurt.”

She shouted over Rio, who answered the door. “She’ll be ready in a second,” Rio said. She was already dressed and ready for the day. 

===

Makoto didn’t allow herself time to break until Keiko was on the gurney, her head stabilized. She knew she was mostly in the EMTs way, but she had to do something. She had to make herself useful. 

She jumped when Principal Shiomi tapped her on the shoulder. “Everyone can hear you grinding your teeth.”

“Sorry.”

“Go. You can ride in the ambulance with her.” Shiomi nodded. “I cleared it with the EMTs.”

Makoto followed the gurney to the front of the school and jumped in the back of the ambulance with Keiko. She’d never seen Keiko so pale, although her face had a permanent redness due to the amount of caffeine she consumed and the amount of stress she constantly had herself under. ‘Maybe this is just what she looks like normally?’ Makoto knew that was wishful thinking. She sat on a bench next to Keiko’s unconscious body, watching her girlfriend’s chest move up and down slightly. 

Makoto was just happy she was still breathing.

===

_Lunchtime_

Aya fought and fought and fought with the hospital’s doctor. “I _understand_ your rules!” She shouted over the doctor’s protests. “What I’m saying is my daughter is not safe with anyone except her friend.”

Aya had already gotten to see Keiko, and knew Makoto would do nothing besides sob quietly while her useless sister gave her confused glances unless she got to see Keiko.

“Ma’am, I don’t understand why you don’t want to be with your daughter-”

“She fucking left me, okay?” Aya finally lost it. “She doesn’t want me around her in good times. She just got fucking shot and the only reason I’m here is because she saved my life.”

Aya wasn’t one to cry. She didn’t cry when her brother died. She didn’t cry when her husband left. She cried now. 

The doctor let Makoto into the room.

===

Makoto bit her lip. She held Keiko’s left hand and leaned over, face-down into the bed. They’d be taking Keiko for surgery to remove the bullet fairly soon. The doctors would have better answers once the bullet was out.

There was a small chance it hit her spine, they told Makoto. The odds were still good that Keiko would make a full recovery, but just the off-chance that she may be wheelchair bound had Makoto freaking out. ‘I’ll just- well, the apartment is already handicap accessible and I’ll make enough to support us and she can still write and if getting shot by your friend who’s possessed by the evil Detective Prince doesn’t scream book deal-’ Makoto stopped her thoughts before she got ahead of herself. ‘She’d be making fun of me right now.’ Makoto’s tears stopped flowing. She reached over to check her phone, noting text messages from Sae. 

**Sae:** I have no idea what to say right now.

 **Sae:** I’m sorry. Extremely sorry.

 **Sae:** Fuck Makoto. Why do I feel like this is my fault?

 **Makoto:** It’s not. I love you, sis.

 **Sae:** I love you, too.

 **Makoto:** We’re so lucky that not even a bullet wound can stop Keiko from being a pain in the ass

 **Sae:** you don’t have to try and make me feel better

 **Makoto:** it’s just as much for me as it is you

She had more messages, all in the form of the Phantom Thieves group chat.

 **Futaba:** Guys, please tell me I didn’t just hear gunshots

 **Futaba:** Scanner is going nuts

 **Ren:** It’s Keiko.

 **Ann:** No 

**Haru:** omw to the scene

Makoto tried to think. Was Haru there?

 **Ryuji:** these motherfuckers

 **Yusuke:** Kosei just went into lockdown

 **Yusuke:** I think every school in the city did

 **Futaba:** can confirm.

 **Ren:** they won’t let us leave class

 **Ren:** Futaba, update?

 **Futaba:** EMTs en route, about a dozen squad cars. Psychotic breakdown expected

 **Ren:** you have any of the cops bugged?

 **Futaba:** I have the principal bugged

 **Futaba:** Or I did

 **Futaba:** Fucking Lucia, did she really have to do this now?

The chat devolved from there with the Thieves speculating what happened. Nobody guessed that Yuuki Mishima would get taken over like that. Makoto sighed. She had another message from a number she didn’t recognize.

 **Unknown:** It’s Principal Shiomi

 **Shiomi:** I couldn’t leave the school. I’ll be by after. Can you give me updates? I’d like to keep the staff informed.

 **Makoto:** she goes into surgery soon. Low chance of paralysis, doctor suspects she’ll make a full recovery. 

**Shiomi:** Thank god.

 **Shiomi:** We’re all thinking of you. I’m so sorry you’re going through this.

 **Makoto:** We’ll survive. 

Makoto couldn’t decide the ethical implications of going through her girlfriend’s phone. She decided against it, thinking anyone who wanted to send Keiko a personal message right now would like to keep it personal. The doctor showed up minutes later to move Keiko to surgery. Makoto had to go back to the waiting room, which was packed with everyone who wasn’t stuck in school. Sojiro and Futaba showed up shortly after Dr. Takemi brought in Rio, Aya and Anna. Shiomi couldn’t let the Phantom Thieves or any of the newspaper staff out of school for liability reasons.

Nobody asked Makoto anything after she gave her brief update. Sojiro brought coffee and food. It was a silent meal.

===

_Midnight_

Keiko went to take a deep breath that hitched when she discovered how dense the air was. It felt like a midsummer Tokyo heat wave without the heat. 

“This wasn’t supposed to happen,” a solemn voice perforated the nothingness. 

Keiko went to speak and found her voice echoing through the pitch-black ether. “I’ll say. I could’ve planned better.”

The voice didn’t respond.

“Where am I, exactly?”

No response.

“You can’t just talk and then say nothing after,” Keiko shouted back indignantly. The world around her then started to change.

 **“I’m concerned,”** Skadi said, appearing before Keiko. 

“Nice to see you, Skadi,” Keiko said. “Does this mean I’m in the Metaverse?”

**“I don’t know.”**

Another ethereal voice returned, this one deeper, angrier. “Had you just taken her out the first time, she wouldn’t be a problem now!”

“Uh,” Keiko stammered. “Right here, guys.”

**“I don’t think they can hear yet.”**

“Yeah,” Keiko said. “I’m beginning to think that’s the case. Hey, Skadi.”

**“Yes?”**

“Do you think I’m going to be okay?”

**“I’ve never seen a weapon like that.”**

“Ah. Guns not a thing for you guys?”

**“They seem to be a recent innovation. You don’t seem to know much about them.”**

The angry ethereal voice returned. “You better pray she’s dead. If she lives to tell the tale, it’s _your_ head.”

“They seem pretty miffed. Think they’re talking about me?”

 **“Well, I’m you. So yes.”** “What if you’re wrong?”

**“Then you’d be wrong, too.”**

“Am I alive?”

**“Well, we don’t really believe in an afterlife, so we are either wrong about religion or we’re still alive.”**

“You’re very good at not giving me answers.”

**“I wonder where I got that from.”**

“Um. Do you think I should try praying or something?”

**“Do you think it will make a difference?”**

“No.”

**“Then no.”**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No real thoughts on this chapter because I reread it before posting and now my brain is mush.


	32. Condolences

_Tuesday, October 4, Evening_

Makoto collapsed into the chair next to Keiko’s bed. Doctors told her Keiko underwent successful surgery and asked if she thought Keiko would want to keep the bullet. Makoto sighed when they asked, knowing her own immediate answer would be no and knowing Keiko would probably want it as a keepsake. She hadn’t come to yet, but Makoto wouldn’t be surprised if she wasn’t already planning something. 

Makoto couldn’t decide who she hated more: Kunikazu Okumura or Keiko.

The man’s shadow pressed every button he could have on the Phantom Thieves. He _knew_ they were grieving. Him and his minions ruthlessly prodded at the open wound left on the Phantom Thieves and it took major restraint from Haru to leave him alive. She wanted to visit Keiko right after but couldn’t bring herself to face anybody. She took the attack on Keiko as a personal failing and Makoto didn’t know how to explain to her that it wasn’t. Keiko was sleeping in a bed she made all her own. 

Makoto jolted her head off the back of the chair when her phone rang. “Shiomi” read across the screen.

“Principal Shiomi,” Makoto said, clearing her throat in the middle of the greeting. “Sorry, I’m hoarse.”

“You’re fine,” Shiomi said. “I was wondering if I could visit. I-” she sighed. “We’ve got some things to discuss.”

“I think this is hardly the time,” Makoto protested. “She’s still unconscious-”

“I know,” Shiomi said. “The proper time was weeks ago, and I beat around the bush and forced her hand. Keiko didn’t fuck up. I did.”

“I don’t understand how you could possibly-”

“I’ll be there in a little bit, okay? It’s really important you hear this from me in person,” Shiomi said. “I know the kind of stress you’re under.”

Makoto opened her mouth to speak, then remembered Keiko mentioning something about Shiomi’s twin brother, and closed it. “Okay. But please keep it short. I’m beyond exhausted.”

“You sound like you just got done fighting a monster or something,” Shiomi said. “Be there in five minutes.”

Makoto used all five of those minutes to doze, which ultimately was a mistake because it left her in a daze when she had to go grab Shiomi from the waiting room. A receptionist let them know that visiting hours ended in an hour, so only one of them would be allowed to stay overnight.

Shiomi assured her she wasn’t staying long.

Makoto returned to her seat, drooping down and resting her head on her hand.

“When’s the last time you ate?” Shiomi looked just as tired as Makoto. 

‘We’re off fighting shadows, but she’s here trying to keep the school safe,’ Makoto thought. 

“We had lunch when we first got here.”

“Good,” Shiomi said. “When Shinji got shot, I didn’t eat for days. I wasn’t-”

“Is that your brother?”

“Oh, no,” Shiomi shook her head. “That’s a whole _other_ story. This one is far more normal. It’s got to do with why I’m here.”

Makoto leaned forward with her elbows on her knees to show she’s listening.

“So, I told Keiko that I applied at the urging of Shinichi Yoshizawa. I wasn’t lying that he urged me to come to Shujin, but he wasn’t the only reason I came here.” Shiomi mirrored Makoto’s sitting position. “I also applied because the Phantom Thieves’ activities needed my attention.”

Makoto leaned back and thought it through. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” 

“Yeah,” Shiomi sat back up straight and looked Makoto directly in the eye. “I don’t expect you to outright admit it but I’m not here to antagonize. You have a Persona?”

“What?” Makoto immediately tried to recover and cursed her poor acting skills. “I mean, what’s that?”

Shiomi giggled. “You aren’t fooling me. I knew something was up the second Kamoshida confessed. I just didn’t know who to thank.”

“I still don’t know who,” Makoto lied. “My investigation didn’t turn up identities, just activities.”

“But you do,” Shiomi said. “And I thought I did until today. Keiko’s… not a Phantom Thief, is she?”

“Why does everyone think that?” Makoto spat. “Seriously, just because she’s good at her job doesn’t mean she’s in cahoots-”

“You’re a Phantom Thief.” The air left Shiomi’s lungs. She had to take a deep breath. “I put her in so much danger-”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Shiomi’s voice croaked. “Stop it. Look, this doesn’t matter right now. I was irresponsible.”

“I don’t see how you’re responsible for any of this,” Makoto glared. Principal Shiomi was rapidly outstaying her welcome. “But if you’re just going to sit here and beat yourself up over it, I’d rather you leave.”

“I know about Personas.”

Makoto looked anywhere but at Shiomi. 

“I’m on your side, but we need to-”

“Stop,” Makoto said. “I believe you. Meet me at LeBlanc after school tomorrow. We can talk there.”

===

_Wednesday, October 5, Morning_

The first thing Kaori Fujioka did that morning was ask her step-sister to shave her head.

Mizuki was concerned at first, but relented when Kaori explained her plan. Conflict journalists, specifically women, often shave their heads and wear wigs or hats in warzones or at protests so they could disguise themselves more easily. Her hair was too thick for a realistic-looking-and-still-reasonably-priced wig to fit properly, so she didn’t really have an option.

She might’ve been tired of dealing with her crazy-thick frizzy hair that took a literal hour to tame every morning, so it was more of a good-riddance than a sad goodbye. It was a necessary first step, because Tokyo was no longer safe, and as much as Kaori wanted to participate in the protests, the best way to honor her hero’s memory would be to make sure no stone went unturned.

Well, Keiko wasn’t dead yet.

Kaori and Mizuki braced for the worst. Makoto-senpai would give brief status updates to the staff over their group chat every couple of hours. The updates got shorter and shorter, but that had more to do with exhaustion than incoming bad news, Kaori thought..

Worse, somehow, was the disappearance of Ren-senpai. The newspaper was practically being run by Sumire, who was great but also the first person to admit that she had no idea what she was doing. She had her father on speed dial. 

Yuuki wasn’t handling anything well. ‘Can’t blame him,’ Kaori thought. ‘I can’t blame him one bit.’

Kaori felt the clippers run through her hair, freeing her from her frizzy prison. ‘Frizon?’ She mused. Portmanteaus were a nice way to keep herself calm. 

“Are you really skipping school?” Mizuki broke Kaori away from her thoughts.

“Do you really think we should be having school?” Kaori shot back. “We nearly saw our senpai die yesterday.”

“Principal Shiomi thinks it’s especially important for the newspaper staff to be at the school where they can be protected,” Mizuki sounded concerned for her sister, who was being uncharacteristically challenging to deal with. “Rumor is she called in a favor from Kirijo Group to heighten security.”

Kaori took a deep breath. “They’re a tech company. What are they going to do for security?”

Mizuki turned off the clippers and shrugged. “All those rich folk have their own private militaries now.”

“That’s not reassuring at all,” Kaori looked as Mizuki placed a mirror in front of her. Her head was narrow enough that she thought she pulled off the bald look. ‘It might even make me look intimidating.’ Mizuki did a good job. “Thanks, Mizuki.”

“Any time,” she chuckled. “And here I thought my first time shaving your head would come from you losing your mind.”

“Hey, we’re all mad here.” 

Mizuki rolled her eyes. “Now, get up. I have to sweep up. I could knit a scarf out of your hair. You get a wig yet?”

“I stopped at the mall on my way home last night-”

“What the fuck, Kaori?” Mizuki cut her off. “You didn’t even get a ride home?”

“The trains were still running,” Kaori said, defending herself. “I’m a big girl. The stores were still open. Just because the world is ending doesn’t mean time stops.”

Mizuki took a deep breath, then let it out. “All these years I wanted you to grow a spine, and you pick the day Tokyo descends into chaos.”

“Hey, I need-”

“I know you need to do this,” Mizuki sighed. “Are you going alone?” Kaori shook her head. “Hikari’s borrowing Yuuki’s old camera and a knife from her dad.”

“For the love of god, Kaori, _be careful.”_ Mizuki wrapped her in a tight hug. “Mom would kill me if she knew I was letting you do this.”

“And dad would kill me if I knew I could do something and didn’t. It’s a lose-lose.” Kaori gave a bright smile. “I’ll be fine, okay?”

“I’ll meet you at Shibuya Crossing after school. If you aren’t there, I’m calling mom.”

“I’ll be fine,” Kaori said. “I promise.”

===

“Niijima-san, do you have a minute?”

Sae startled at her desk and scrambled to shove every file she could into her desk. She didn’t need Akechi snooping around while she tried to find his connection to the attempt on Keiko’s life. She also snuck her taser into the back pocket of her black dress pants. She wore a light jacket over her usual dress shirt: It flowed low enough that nobody would suspect she carried a weapon. “What do you want?”

“I’d like to speak to you in private.” Akechi didn’t sound like his normal, cheerful self. “Not here.”

“No offense, but I have a lot of work to do,” Sae said. “I don’t have time to humor your childish plots.”

Akechi sighed. “Fine. I guess you don’t want to hear the lead I’ve discovered on Keiko Miyahara’s murderer.”

Sae hitched. He’s speaking as if Keiko is already dead. “Fine. Close the door.”

“Thank you,” Akechi said. He sat down in the chair across from Sae. He slid a photo across. “I think this is the killer.”

Sae looked down at a familiar frizzy-haired, glasses clad boy that meant so much to her sister and Keiko. She laughed. “You bring me a photo and no evidence.”

“He wasn’t at the school-”

“Do you really think I didn’t pull the file for the only kid at the school with a record? Do you know anything about me?” Sae spat the words. “You’re such a monstrous dipshit. I know his teacher. He was in the room the entire time. I don’t know why you think he doesn’t have an alibi, but every person in that room will confirm he didn’t move a muscle.”

“How did you-”

“Akechi, get out of my sight. I don’t know what you have to gain from trying to frame this guy, but that was a pathetic attempt,” Sae said. “Where were _you_ yesterday morning? If we’re just throwing baseless accusations out, care to answer that question? There are three people in the entire country that hate her enough to want her dead. One of them is already in custody, one of them is standing in front of me, and the other will probably have me murdered for even saying this. Get the fuck out of my office.”

Sae stormed out soon after. Director Kaida called after her, but she only shouted back something about using a personal day. ‘God knows I have enough of them,’ Sae thought to herself. ‘I don’t need to be here. I need to be with Makoto. What was I thinking coming to work?’

She knew what she was thinking. If she wasn’t there, this case would fall to somebody else, and the trick Akechi just tried to pull would have worked. She pulled out her phone and sent a text to her boss saying she was just getting some fresh air and might go check out the scene of the crime to gain some perspective.

===

_After School_

One of Shiho’s life goals was to never have to set foot in that hospital again. 

With Ann and Ryuji’s help, she made it through the door with no problems. She didn’t feel her heart rate spike. She wasn’t sweating profusely. She felt fine, like she was going to visit a friend.

It was by some cruel twist of fate that Keiko landed in the same room Shiho spent her first few days in. 

“Shiho, are you-”

“I’m doing fine, Ann,” Shiho stepped in through the doorway and tried to give Makoto a friendly smile. She was packing up some things into a bag. She was meeting somebody at LeBlanc, then going home to shower before coming back. Shiho volunteered herself and Ann to keep Keiko company. When Ryuji heard, he just assumed his presence was required.

It wasn’t, but Shiho appreciated him just jumping in without being told. 

“Thank you for doing this,” Makoto said as she went to leave. “I know it’s silly, but I don’t think she should be alone.”

Shiho shook her head. “I understand. If Ann had a choice, she wouldn’t have left my side the entire time.” Shiho didn’t expect Makoto to hug her, and didn’t hug back even if she did appreciate the gesture. 

The hospital had brought in a few extra chairs. Keiko must’ve had visitors during the day, and somebody sent her yellow roses, a pretty typical ‘get well soon’ kind of flower. 

Keiko didn’t seem the type for flowers, but she did seem the type to enjoy the literary meaning behind yellow roses, specifically. 

Ann and Ryuji took up residence in two of the school-like plastic chairs the hospital set out. Shiho sat to Keiko’s right, where Makoto had been sitting before she left. 

“So,” Shiho looked at the sleeping girl next to her. ‘Sleeping,’ Shiho thought. ‘Let’s go with that.’ “Think this is the longest Keiko’s ever gone without talking?”

Ryuji gave her a concerned and slightly offended look. Ann thought it was funny, though.

“I’m sure she’s gone at least a few minutes without talking,” Ann said. “This takes the cake, though.”

“Yeah,” Shiho said. “It’s hard to talk when you’re muff diving.”

“Shiho,” Ryuji narrowed his eyes and shook his head. “That’s not-”

“I know,” Shiho sighed. “It’s not funny. I’ve lost my touch.”

Ann and Ryuji shared a look while Keiko slouched in her chair. Shiho focused on Keiko’s light breathing for a short while before she felt the need to speak her mind. “This is my fault, in a way.”

“That’s ridiculous-” Ann started but Ryuji shushed her.

“Shiho, whatever you’re thinking, it ain’t your fault.” 

“I know it’s not my fault directly,” Shiho said. “I’ve just been thinking about Kamo-” she stammered and shook her head like she was dazed. “No. I’ve been thinking about Kamoshida lately. Had I just-”

“Shiho, I swear if you say ‘had i just stayed quiet’ I’m going to punch you in the mouth,” Ann said. She leaned forward in her chair and had her fists balled.

“No, that’s not-” Shiho paused. “That’s what i was going to say, but that’s not really what I mean. If I’d been smart about it, I mean. If I’d kept my head, made plans. You know? Maybe I’d be with you guys.”

“D-” Ann stuttered. “Do you want to be?”

Shiho shook her head. “Look where it got her. It’s a miracle she lived.”

Ryuji nodded. “They won’t like that she lived.”

“You know what the worst part is?” Shiho looked at her friends with grave concern. “She’ll never be able to throw a baseball again.”

Ann shut her eyes tightly. “Shiho, now is _not_ the time for jokes-”

“I don’t know, Ann,” Ryuji shrugged. “That sounds like the kinda lame shit Keiko would be saying right now.”

“Yeah, and I’d be yelling at her, too,” Ann said.

===

Kaori didn’t have much to show for her day out on the front lines of the protests. She didn’t have much of an idea what she was doing and the crowd was pretty small. From what she understood, the crowds would grow larger as people got out of school and work.

This bit of foresight stemmed from research she conducted while she was supposed to be sleeping. She and Mizuki shared a room and neither slept a wink. Hikari couldn’t sleep either, and the night mostly devolved into them rhapsodizing and eulogizing their recently fallen boss.

Kaori wasn’t discouraged and neither was Hikari. She’d gotten some great shots of the picket line down Shibuya Crossing. The daytime crowd was mostly made up of vagrants and career activists, along with the odd student-playing-hooky and strikers from the Big Bang Burger down the street. The cops left them alone during the day, but a harsh curfew put into place last night led to several arrests and many people getting beaten to a pulp. Kaori grew up a lot in a short period of time after she saw a man’s orbital bone get caved in by a policeman’s baton. She knew from that point that his wasn’t a game. The man hadn’t done anything wrong from what she could tell, and standing in the wrong place at the wrong time certainly wasn’t crime enough for a shattered eye socket. 

She shouldn’t have shown Hikari the video, but the older girl immediately volunteered to come protect her new, smaller friend. They both wanted to do right by Keiko.

Should the standard for journalism be ‘get on a megalomaniac’s shitlist and almost get murdered?’ Probably not, Kaori thought. But it did present a great point. Hundreds, if not thousands, turned out last night inspired by the work of somebody she got to work with directly. If that wasn’t cool, Kaori didn’t know what was.

===

Principal Shiomi was already sitting in a booth across from Futaba when Makoto walked into LeBlanc. Futaba seemed pretty wound up, but Ren stood behind the counter reading a book and not reacting to anything Futaba was saying.

“Where’s Sojiro?” Makoto sat in front of Ren. He must’ve been pretty absorbed into his reading because he jumped and mumbled something incoherent. 

“He went to drop food off at Keiko’s,” Ren said. “He figured they weren’t going to be up to much. Are you staying there or with your sister?”

“I don’t think I can leave Sae alone right now.” Sae stopped by to visit Keiko earlier that morning. She tried to put on a front but Makoto could tell she was seething. Something happened at work that morning, and she didn’t know how to ask.

“Yeah,” Ren nodded. “I think we’re all stuck in a loop blaming ourselves for this. It’s really easy to act like minor changes to our actions could have changed the outcome.”

Makoto agreed. “We should have at least seen this coming. Even with Okumura, we had more than enough warning.”

Ren frowned. “Haru isn’t taking it well.”

“Her father or-”

“I don’t know if she could possibly care any less about her father right now,” Ren said. “She wasn’t at school today and I’m genuinely terrified she’s gathering some kind of insurgency.”

Makoto’s laugh stopped abruptly when Ren shook his head. 

“I’m not kidding.”

Futaba’s voice got progressively louder and Makoto decided she should try and save Shiomi.

“Can you at least tell me why I get an angry message from Lucia whenever I put spyware on your phone?”

Shiomi had been humoring Futaba up to that point but Makoto noticed a shift when she mentioned her attempt at surveillance.

“You’re-” she smacked her forehead. “You’re Alibaba?”

Futaba looked back and forth from Makoto to Ren trying to decide what she should do.

Ren shrugged. “Cat’s out of the bag, Futaba.”

“Speaking of cats, where’s Mona?” Makoto tried to change the subject. She’d seen Keiko use Felicia as a distraction enough times to know it works.

“He went with Sojiro,” Ren said. “I think he wanted to check on Felicia.”

“She’s probably losing her mind,” Makoto said. “She’s stuck there alone with the scourge of her existence, Anna’s laser pointer.”

“Seriously, you’re Alibaba?” Shiomi changed the subject right back. “The hacker Fuuka complains about is Wakkaba’s daughter…”

“Wait-” Futaba said. “Yamagishi-san is Lucia?”

Shiomi raised an eyebrow. “Have you two met?” 

“Not in person,” Futaba said. “I got a random add on Fortnite and-”

“You play Fortnite?” Ren broke into a giggle fit. 

Shiomi’s laughter matched his. “Fuuka plays Fortnite?”

Makoto cut through the laughter. “Can we get to the point? My girlfriend’s in a hospital bed and we don’t know when she’ll wake up. I’d rather not miss it because you’d all rather talk about video games.”

Ren finished making her coffee and set it on the counter. “Sorry, Makoto.”

“Yeah,” Futaba said. “Sorry.”

“Life goes on,” Shiomi said. “It doesn’t feel like it right now, but it will.”

“She’ll be up and begging Tokyo for a quote in no time,” Ren chuckled.

“I’ve been through this before,” Shiomi said. “Actually, yesterday made it 7 years ago they tried to kill one of my best friends. But if I’m to tell you any further, I need you to level with me. Are you the Phantom Thieves?”

“I told you, we don’t know anything-”

“You’re a terrible liar,” Shiomi smirked.

“And what if we are?” Ren leaned forward on the counter. 

His question hung in the air for a short bit. 

“Do you mind showing me where you fight shadows?” Shiomi grinned when she noticed them squirm. “Well, I found three of you. And Haru, probably?”

“I don’t see why we should confirm anything,” Ren said. “If we were what you accuse us of being, which we _aren’t,_ what’s keeping you from calling the police as soon as you leave and ratting us out?”

Shiomi gave a pensive look and smiled when the lightbulb went off. “How’s Igor?”

Makoto watched Ren’s face lose color. “I don’t know who you’re talking about.”

“Oh, come on,” Shiomi said. “Giant nose, bloodshot eyes, creepy smile, talks like he’s reading your fortune-”

“Okay,” Ren said. “I officially have a million questions.”

‘Who’s Igor?’ Makoto hadn’t ever heard the name. She could ask later. 

“I suspect you do,” Shiomi said. “As do I-”

LeBlanc’s bell chimed and Makoto’s stomach churned.

“Store’s closed,” Ren’s voice steeled. 

“Why’s the door unlocked, then?” Akechi tried and failed to sound innocent. 

“The sign says we’re closed,” Futaba said. It might’ve been more intimidating if she wasn’t hiding behind Makoto. 

“I just thought I’d come and offer my condolences,” he said in a fake, saccharine voice. “I wanted to see how Miyahara-san’s friends are holding up.”

“We’re fine,” Ren said. Shiomi gave Futaba a look that said she needed to be quiet. “You need to leave.”

Akechi ignored him and approached Shiomi. “And who might you be?”

“You were asked to leave,” she said.

“Why am I so unwelcomed here?”

Makoto clenched her fists at her side and stood up. “Our friend got shot and you’re here to gloat. Sorry we don’t want to take a break from mourning to boost your ego.”

Akechi tried to back away but Makoto kept stepping forward. “I swear, I had no ill-intent by showing up here today. I consider Ren a friend and I thought I’d check in-”

“The gun was police-issued, Akechi-san,” Shiomi interrupted. “I apologize on my student’s behalf, but I fully understand why they’re treating a member of law enforcement this way.” 

“I fully intend to seek-”

“You came here to find out if she’s dead,” Makoto said. “You came here to find out if she’s dead because you tried to kill her.”

Akechi’s face paled and he took another step back, this time hitting the door. “I don’t know what you’re-” the wind left his lungs as Makoto lifted a rib-shattering knee into his gut.

“Get the fuck out,” Makoto said. “If I _ever_ see you again, you won’t leave alive. You’ve taken enough people from me.”

Akechi scrambled to his feet and exited the cafe.

“Well, I was hoping he wouldn’t know that we know what he is,” Ren rushed over and placed a hand on Makoto’s back. She was shaking. “But that was really cool.”

“Do you think he’ll press charges?” 

Shiomi’s question shook Makoto out of her rage slightly. 

“I don’t think he will,” Ren said. “He’s scared shitless right now. Somebody _knows.”_

“Knows what?”

“That he’s the one causing the mental shutdowns.” Ren’s statement hung in the air until Futaba pointed something else out.

“Guys? He dropped his phone.”

“Oh. How do we get that back to him?”

“Ren! He dropped his phone!” Futaba said excitedly, and rammed Makoto with a giant hug. “He dropped his fucking phone!”

“Why is she so excited?” Shiomi raised an eyebrow.

Ren sighed. “Nothing gets Futaba more excited than unwitting surveillance. You’ve got 10 minutes to do your thing, then I’ll chase after him and give it back. I’ll even apologize for Makoto’s behavior and smooth that over.”

“How in the hell are you going to do that?” Shiomi sounded bewildered.

“Akechi’s got a giant crush on me,” Ren slouched. “It’s gross.”

“Hey, there’s nothing wrong with-”

“It’s not gross because he’s gay, Futaba. It’s gross because he’s gross.” Futaba went right to work bugging Akechi’s phone. She didn’t need the entire ten minutes.

Ren left and caught up with Akechi before he even made it to the station, leaving Makoto with Shiomi while Futaba walked home to fiddle with her desktop. 

“So, uh-” Makoto understood that Shiomi wasn’t quite a normal person, but she was still a principal. “Sorry you had to see that.”

“That’s really the guy?” Shiomi’s eyes met Makoto’s and she realized it was like looking into her own. She’d never seen another person with red eyes except Sae. 

Makoto nodded. “We’ve known for a while. We just haven’t had proof or any way to confront him.”

“You didn’t have proof but you’re sure it’s him?” Shiomi raised an eyebrow.

“We don’t have tangible proof.” Makoto had no idea how to explain _how_ they knew because just saying Keiko had a dream would make her sound stupid. “What do you know about the Metaverse?”

“I know that it doesn’t make sense and it’s different for everybody,” Shiomi said. “We entered through the Dark Hour. Basically, one hour every night that only those with _the potential_ were awake for.” She said “the potential” in a voice so goofy that Makoto assumed there was an inside joke in there somewhere. “There’s another group that entered through the TV-”

“Who?” Makoto interjected. “Keiko recently discovered a palace that can be entered through the TV. We use an app, though.”

“I thought you said she wasn’t a Phantom Thief,” Shiomi said in a sing-songy voice, like she caught Makoto in a lie.

“She’s not,” Makoto said. “She likes doing things her own way.”

Shiomi sighed. “Look where that got her.”

“Excuse you?” Makoto leaned forward in her booth seat.

“Sorry. Didn’t mean that as an insult, it’s just-” Makoto watched as Shiomi’s face shifted expressions. “These kinds of things don’t happen on a whim. You’re all given these powers for a reason.”

“So, she should have abandoned her reporting to join us?” Makoto felt guilty as soon as she asked the question. ‘I can’t be mad at Shiomi for that. That’s literally what I wanted.’

“No,” Shiomi shook her head. “I don’t know. It’s hard to say why any of these things happened. I don’t have the insight I used to.”

Shiomi left shortly after it became obvious Ren wasn’t coming back any time soon. Makoto left after Sojiro returned before Ren did. She had no doubts Ren was safe. She heard Akechi’s cracking ribs. He was in no state to attack anyone.

===

As the protesting population grew, so did the police presence. Kaori found herself thankful that the Tokyo police rarely responded to situations with live rounds. Riot shields seemed to be enough to handle the crowd that night. 

The second night of the protests was calmer than the first until it got dark. Shibuya’s underbelly came out when it got dark and it spelled chaos for everybody. The attempt on Keiko brought out massive protests against the police and the government, and nobody hated the police and the government quite as much as the yakuza. Kaori and Hikari found themselves surrounded by well-built men in garish attire with no intention of hiding their associations as they shouted slurs at the cops. 

The girls made their way toward Central Street in hopes of finding somewhere more peaceful. They weren’t going to get much of a story out of a bunch of yakuza fighting the cops, and other than a few photos, Kaori didn’t want to have her name attached to a story condemning either party.

Central Street wasn’t much better. The strikers outside Big Bang Burger held signs demanding a higher wage, less hours and a safer work environment, which attracted a similar crowd. This time, though, the yakuza seemed to be recruiting instead of agitating. The police presence was lesser here as public perception of Okumura was low enough that nobody truly stood against the strikers. Hikari grabbed a few photos and Kaori was able to break through the yakuza recruiters to talk to some strikers, a story she took on without being asked. Things went well until a yakuza backed into her, knocking her to the ground. The man who bumped into her actually apologized and sounded like a normal person. His friends weren’t.

“What you thinkin’ messin’ with boss like that?” One large man got right in Kaori’s face. She backed up and he followed. Hikari couldn’t break through the crowd to get to her. “You gonna apologize or what?”

“Sorry, I-”

“You gonna need more than an apology, kid,” the man said. “Boss ain’t takin’-” something hit the top of the man’s head. “The fuck was that?”

His momentary distraction allowed Kaori to scamper down the back alley while the man shouted. 

“Where the fuck is she?”

She ducked into a shop, some shady looking pawn shop called Untouchable. She desperately tried to catch her breath and leaned against the glass counter. It wasn’t until the shopkeep cleared his throat that she discovered she wasn’t alone.

“Hands off the counter, kid.” He was tall, but Kaori thought everyone was tall. The man looked gruff, in need of a shave, and his gecko tattoo on the side of his neck was fading. He didn’t look old, but his hair was starting to turn grey. “I just had the kid clean that,” he said, shaking his head.

“I’m so sorry, sir.” Kaori bowed. “I wasn’t watching where I was going and-” she had to pause herself because she was speaking too fast. She hadn’t yet caught her breath.

“You’re good, kid,” he smirked. “Wipe some spit on it and it’s good as new. What brings you into my shop?”

“Uh,” Kaori tried to think of a good lie. “I need a knife.”

The man coughed hiding a laugh. “A knife?”

Kaori gave a sheepish nod. “Uh, yeah. The protests, you know. Um. The yakuza decided to offer their ‘support’ and I’m-”

The man nodded. “I get you. Trust me, kid. You ain’t gonna do nothing with a knife. You’re better off staying home.”

“I _can’t_ stay home,” Kaori said. “There’s so much happening if I don’t report it-”

“You from a newspaper?”

“Uh, a student one.” Kaori tried not to panic. The man didn’t exactly ask the question in a friendly tone. “I’m Kaori Fujioka, reporter for the Shujin Gazette-”

“Jesus, kid,” The man shook his head. “Didn’t they just kill your boss?” Kaori stammered and he started speaking again instead of waiting for her to gather herself. “That Miyahara girl, ain’t it? My kid’s just heartbroken over that.” He shook his head. “Poor girl. Uh, I’m Munehisa Iwai. I’m sorry for everything that’s happened. Shit ain’t easy.”

“Thank you, Iwai-san,” Kaori said. “And thank you especially for letting me hide out here.”

Iwai waved her off. “It’s nothing. I’m closing up for the night, though. You need a ride home? Trains ain’t gonna be safe.”

“Sir, thank you, but I couldn’t impose-”

“Ya ain’t,” Iwai said. “I got a boy ‘bout your age. I couldn’t sleep at night letting a young girl on those trains durin’ a fuckin’ riot.”

“Thank you, sir.” Kaori said. “But my friend is still out there and I-”

“I’ll go grab her. What’s her name?”

“Hikari Shimizu.”

“Got it,” Iwai walked right out the front door. Keiko could hear him shouting in a deep voice. “Lookin’ for Shimizu.” He was back with her in seconds, wearing a smirk. “I still got it.”

“How’d you get all those thugs to listen to you?” Hikari stared at him in amazement. 

“Used ‘ta be one of ‘em,” Iwai said. “Got out of the game years back, but nobody worth a shit forgets.”

Iwai climbed in the driver’s seat of his old beater of a pickup truck. Kaori took the middle seat, letting Hikari have the window. 

“How’d you get out, if you don’t mind me asking?” They were a block away from Hikari’s when Kaori decided she wasn’t okay with silence much longer. 

“Had a kid,” Iwai said. “Well, I found a kid. Couldn’t let him see how I lived. I cleaned up, opened a shop and the rest is history.”

“That’s really sweet,” Kaori said. Hikari said farewell to both of them when they pulled in front of her apartment building. 

“It was the right thing to do,” Iwai rubbed the back of his head with a free hand. “Probably best he ain’t mine. He’s real bright. No kid o’ mine could be that smart.”

They pulled in front of Kaori’s home and she opened the door. 

“Thank you for the ride home,” Kaori bowed.

“Don’t sweat it, kid. If you’re in the neighborhood at that time again, just come get me. I only live a few blocks away.” Iwai flicked the tip of his cap and drove off.

‘What an interesting guy,’ Kaori thought as she walked through the front gate. She greeted her step-mother. It was weird for Kaori to think of her as a step-mother. She’d been around as long as she could remember, and Kaori had no memories of her real mom.

“Where were you?”

Kaori froze. She didn’t get in trouble last night because she was already in bed. Mom waited up, though. “Um, I was in Shibuya-”

“At the riots?”

“Well, they were protests,” Kaori hugged her notebook. “I needed to be there for the newspaper club and-”

“What happened to your hair?”

“Um. I’m trying to stay incognito and I used my allowance to buy some wigs-” Kaori answered the questions rapid fire, as honestly as she could. “I want to document what’s happening.”

Her mother sighed. “I don’t want you putting yourself in danger like this.”

“I’m being as safe as I can be-”

“I know. You don’t have to defend yourself.” Kaori’s step-mother wasn’t a hugger. “I’m proud of you for doing something. And I appreciate you being honest with me.”

Kaori’s cheeks turned bright red, unused to any sort of compliments from anybody. “Thanks.”

“You really should have asked before you shaved your head,” her step-mother rolled her eyes and smiled lazily. “We have all that hair dye from Mizuki’s emo phase and your hair’s so thick it probably would have held better.”

Kaori sighed. “I’ll keep that in mind for next time.”

===

_Thursday, Oct. 6, Midnight_

The TV in Keiko’s hospital room flickered on with fuzzy lines streaming up and down the screen.

Keiko shot out of bed at the noise, expelling a painful grunt. “Fucking shoulder,” she mumbled and hissed. “That really fucking hurts.”

“How’s the shoulder, Chief?” A red haired girl with golden eyes in a blue leotard graced the gradually clearing TV screen.

“Seriously, where’d that nickname come from?”

“I am Sumire, after all,” Kasumi fluttered her lashes and spoke in a Sumire impression. “Look at me,” she jumped in a way that mocked a ballerina instead of a gymnast, “I’m Sumire. I’m not good at anything-”

“Stop it!” Keiko shouted, and Makoto stirred.

“Huh? Keiko!” Makoto’s joy was cut short when she saw the light on the screen. “Not now-”

“Am I interrupting something? Oh, I hope I was. I always wondered how you guys did it. Want to show me-” she paused. “Oh. Somebody’s coming and it’s not you. Bye!”

The TV flickered off and Keiko passed right back out.

“That’s fine,” Makoto said out loud. “I didn’t want to sleep tonight anyway.”

Makoto sat up most of the night, and she’d have been lying if she wasn’t more concerned that it took the doctors 10 minutes to respond to Keiko waking up briefly than she was about the Midnight Channel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The stuff about conflict journalists shaving their heads is real, surprisingly, but Kaori is mostly overreacting.
> 
> I couldn't decide for the longest time how I was going to handle this chapter. I originally intended to have a time skip and then somebody would just recap it for Keiko when she woke up and I decided I hated that idea. This story is all from Keiko's perspective and will remain so, but I thought this gave an interesting look into how everyone is handling the events of the previous chapter. It just worked better even though I am a longtime hater of perspective changes that don't have a reason to exist. 
> 
> I cannot stress this enough. Fuck Akechi and the horse he rode in on. 
> 
> Thanks for reading! I'd love to know what you think :)


	33. Returning Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PIO = Public Information Officer. Most cities have one. It's the person in charge of responding to documents requests. A good PIO is a journalist's best friend, and a lot of time they're former journalists. My friend who is a PIO refers to herself as a "recovering journalist" whenever somebody asks her what her career is.

_Thursday, Oct. 6, Early Morning_

Keiko groaned in pain as she tried to sit up. She eventually gave up, acknowledging that the pain in her shoulder was much worse any time she did something that wasn’t lying still. 

“This blows,” she said, not realizing her voice would wake up Makoto. She fell asleep slouched in her chair, her phone still in her lap. ‘She must’ve been having a hard time sleeping.’ Makoto usually slept with her phone across the room.

“You’re awake,” Makoto said sleepily, reaching a hand over to grasp Keiko’s. 

Keiko tried to let her muscles relax. “Think they’ll let me go to school?”

“Keiko, you _just_ had a bullet taken out of you.” Keiko knew the tone well and realized she didn’t make her sarcasm obvious.

“Yeah,” Keiko said, and nearly shrugged. Something in her brain wouldn’t let her. “Did I get to keep it?”

Makoto leaned over and hit a button on the side of the bed so Keiko wasn’t laying quite as flat. “You’re going to pop the stitches if you keep trying to sit up,” Makoto said. “Relax.”

“I am,” Keiko huffed. “At least, I’m trying to. What’d I miss?”

“I broke Akechi’s ribs,” Makoto said. “I might’ve threatened to kill him.” 

“I’m torn,” Keiko frowned. “Because I very much want Akechi to have his ribs broken, but I also am now really concerned you’re going to get arrested-”

“Ren took care of it,” Makoto said. “He sweet-talked Akechi into not ratting me out.”

“Poor Sumire-” Keiko paused. “That channel was on TV last night.”

Makoto nodded. “I was hoping you wouldn’t remember.”

“Did Sumire stay put this time?”

“She did,” Makoto said. “I texted her right after. She stayed at Ren’s.”

“Good,” Keiko said. “What else?”

“Um,” Makoto put a finger under her chin. “Shiho came with Ann and Ryuji to visit you yesterday.”

“She stepped foot in the hospital?” Keiko beamed. “That’s such a huge step-”

Makoto nodded. “It was important to her that she be here.”

“I’m so damn proud of her,” Keiko felt happy tears coming. “I’ll have to call her after school. Or maybe I shouldn’t? She might find that patronizing and-”

“You’re going to spend all day hand wringing over whether or not being proud of Shiho is patronizing, aren’t you?” Makoto asked dryly. 

“It’s a polarizing question, damn it,” Keiko frowned. “Think they’ll send me home soon?”

“Probably,” Makoto said. “I asked the doctor last night and you’re only being kept because of the mental shutdowns.” “What’s that got to do with anything?” Keiko took a second. “Don’t answer that. I think I get it. From a medical standpoint, they aren’t sure if it’s contagious, and given Yuuki had a psychotic- oh, fuck.” Keiko felt a sweat break. “Is Yuuki okay? Can I opt not to press charges?”

“He’s not a suspect,” Makoto assured her. “It was an obvious psychotic breakdown. I don’t know how he’s doing, though. I can’t imagine he’s doing well.”

“Can you get me my phone? I’m going to text him this very second,” Keiko said. “I can’t relax knowing he’s beating himself up over it.”

Makoto tossed her phone over then winced when it landed on Keiko’s chest. 

“Fuck-” Keiko elongated the ‘uh’ sound. “That hurt.”

“I’m so sorry,” Makoto said. “I wasn’t even thinking.”

Keiko took a deep breath. “It’s not that big of a deal. I’ll be like this for a bit, I’m guessing.”

She unlocked her phone, which must’ve been charged while she was out because it had a full battery. ‘Makoto,’ Keiko thought. ‘She thinks of everything.’

 **Yuuki:** Keiko, I don’t even know what to say. I have no idea why I tried to kill you. I don’t even know where the gun came from. I don’t remember anything from that morning. I’m so sorry. I’ll never be able to live with myself.

The message was marked Tuesday.

 **Keiko:** I’m awake. And please, don’t worry about it. I know what happened, and you weren’t in control. I know the culprit, and I have every intention of getting him back. I won’t be able to do it without you here, so please, don’t beat yourself up. 

**Yuuki:** Please tell me this isn’t just a joke. Are you actually awake?

 **Keiko:** I asked you what you thought about Mizuki on Sunday while you were designing pages

 **Yuuki:** What was with that, anyway?

 **Keiko:** She said that all the good guys at Shujin were taken and I told her that you were single

 **Yuuki:** somebody tries to help me get a girlfriend and I try to shoot her

 **Yuuki:** nice one, Mishima

 **Keiko:** Those two things aren’t really related but Makoto accidentally punched me in the face one and I love her very much

 **Yuuki:** wait you’re dating Makoto?

 **Keiko:** Oh. right. ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ tbh I can’t remember who knows

 **Yuuki:** I won’t tell.

 **Keiko:** See? Shooting me notwithstanding, you’re still a good person.

Keiko had so many text messages to go through and while she wanted to hate it, she had nothing but time until the doctor told her she could go home. ‘Felicia is probably worried sick.’

 **Anna:** Your cat is being a spaz

 **Anna:** hey there are a lot of sirens heading in your direction. Wanna keep me updated?

 **Anna:** your mom just said Shujin is under lockdown

 **Anna:** I don’t even know what to say. I can’t come up with good last words to you, so you aren’t allowed to die, and that’s that. I’ve decided.

 **Anna:** please be okay

 **Keiko:** I’m alive

 **Anna:** thank god can you come get this fucking cat

 **Keiko:** I bet she’s been a hellion. Tell Felicia I’ll be home soon. Has she conquered the red dot yet?

 **Anna:** Is that really what you want to talk about right now?

 **Keiko:** If there is ever a time where I don’t want to talk about my cat just assume I’m an imposter and shoot me. Just uh, make sure you don’t miss. 

**Anna:** god. You could’ve been a marine with my dad.

 **Keiko:** I don’t know what that means

 **Anna:** his war buddies all deal with their trauma by begging to die

 **Keiko:** Huh. It’s a shame I’m a pacifist.

Keiko decided she should probably text her mother.

 **Keiko:** Hi, the doctor said 203 months was too late for an abortion so they brought me back

 **Mom:** I have so many questions

 **Mom:** How do you feel?

 **Keiko:** Sore, but good. A little groggy, and I can’t really move.

 **Mom:** I can be at the hospital as soon as you need me. Dr. Takemi said she’ll pick you up to bring you home.

 **Keiko:** Thank you mom. I’m sorry to have you all worried like this.

 **Mom:** Apologize to Makoto, not me. I’ve been in her shoes before. It’s not fun.

 **Keiko:** I will. Love you

 **Mom:** Love you too

“Hey, Makoto,” Keiko said. Makoto jerked awake. She’d fallen back asleep. “Uh, sorry.”

“No, you’re good. What’s up?”

“I’m sorry. These last few days have been so rough on you, and it’s all my fault,” Keiko said. “I love you.”

“I love you, too. I don’t think it’s your fault, by the way. I’m not about to victim blame the girl that got shot trying to hold criminals accountable.”

Keiko returned a soft smile and went back to her phone.

 **Ren:** I highly doubt you see this but we’re all thinking about you. I’ve never seen the school this distraught.

 **Ren:** holy shit

 **Ren:** Word got out that it was an assassination attempt and the weapon belonged to the police. Shibuya is crazy right now.

 **Ren:** I’m getting home. It’s too dangerous here for me.

‘Too dangerous for _Ren,_ of all people.’ He sent another message on Wednesday. 

**Ren:** Becky asked about you. She wants to know when she can visit.

 **Ren:** You’ll have a lot of visitors when you’re able.

 **Keiko:** Looking forward to it. It’s gonna be annoying having to do all my interviews over the phone, so maybe I can get sources to come to me

 **Ren:** Ushimaru just threw chalk at me for celebrating in class

 **Keiko:** put your phone away, dork

 **Ren:** Rude.

Keiko left Ren alone, saving him from another chalk barrage.

 **Alibaba:** The only reason the whole world hasn’t seen you naked yet is because I’m not as good at photoshop as I thought I was and Yusuke is refusing to help with such a task.

 **SendNews:** Well. That’s good, I guess. 

**Alibaba:** I’m so glad you’re alive. You’re never allowed to leave the house again. We can be hermit buddies

 **SendNews:** by definition, you can’t be a hermit and have a buddy

 **Alibaba:** semantics

 **Alibaba:** I bugged Akechi’s phone. No more surprise visits.

 **SendNews:** Ah, yes. My intention all along.

 **Alibaba:** Quite a roundabout plan to get his phone in my hands

 **SendNews:** I’m nothing if not thorough.

 **Alibaba:** Also, your kids are just as stupid as you are

 **SendNews:** My kids?

 **Alibaba:** Yeah. Your newsbabies or whatever they’re called

 **SendNews:** Staffers? Reporters? Employees?

 **Alibaba:** newsbabies sounds cooler. 

**SendNews:** It absolutely does not sound cooler

 **Alibaba:** yeah and I can’t decide if you’re the mom or if Makoto’s the mom

 **SendNews:** why can’t we both be the mom?

 **SendNews:** why am I even humoring this

 **SendNews:** honestly my mom would just be thrilled to have grandkids

 **Alibaba:** See? I’m helping

 **SendNews:** “Helping.” Right. I should be home today. You, Ren and Sumire should drop by.

 **Alibaba:** We will. Sojiro wants to see you, too. 

Keiko went and checked, and Kaori blew up her phone.

 **Kaori:** These protests are crazy

 **Kaori:** Hikari is coming with me. We’ll have a story.

**Kaori attached a photo.**

The photo was from Wednesday night at Shibuya Crossing it looked like. Keiko had never seen it so full of people with no intention to actually go anywhere. She didn’t recognize the people in the photo, but one of them had a sign with her name on it. It was surreal.

 **Kaori:** They think the police tried to have you assassinated.

 **Kaori:** Uh. They make a compelling argument.

 **Kaori:** Hikari and I both miss you. I’m sorry. 

**Kaori attached a photo.**

**Kaori:** I forgot to tell you! I did a thing.

 **Keiko:** Where’s your hair!?

 **Kaori:** too thick for a wig so Mizuki cut it off. 

**Keiko:** Is Shibuya that much like a warzone?

 **Kaori:** I got rescued by an ex-yakuza last night so you tell me

 **Keiko:** Kaori. This is very important.

 **Keiko:** was he missing any fingers

 **Kaori:** No? He owned a small shop on Central Street

 **Keiko:** Was his name Kiryu

 **Kaori:** No, his name’s Iwai

 **Keiko:** Oh. 

**Keiko:** That’s probably good

 **Keiko:** and we are going to have a very, very long talk about why you’re to never, ever throw yourself into a warzone for a paper that’s not even paying you again.

 **Kaori:** I thought you’d be proud of me

 **Keiko:** I am. But I’m also not about to get my friends killed following in my footsteps.

Keiko spent the rest of the morning going through all of her messages, texting everyone back that she could. It was exhausting. One came in right as she was going to put down the phone.

 **Sae:** Makoto told me you’re awake

 **Sae:** If I ever complain about my sister again, remind me that she broke Akechi’s ribs so badly that he can barely talk.

 **Sae:** it’s so quiet. It’s wonderful

 **Sae:** I can hear myself think.

 **Sae:** I wish I’d done it

 **Keiko:** We’re gonna break more than his ribs.

 **Sae:** can I help

 **Sae:** I mean. I legally can’t, and should tell you not to. But if you move fast enough, court of public opinion might keep you from getting convicted.

 **Sae:** Tokyo’s turned on him pretty hard. His last major appearance was him talking about seeking justice in your name. Talk about getting burned.

 **Keiko:** Just like I planned it.

 **Sae:** really?

 **Keiko:** absolutely not. Bullet wounds are painful.

 **Keiko:** So, uh. Anyone getting arrested?

 **Sae:** they’re bending over backward to pretend Shido is innocent

 **Keiko:** Cool.

 **Sae:** There’s more we need to discuss.

 **Sae:** how soon do you plan on getting back to work?

 **Keiko:** I figured I’d write a column about getting shot. Not a whole lot more I can do when I’m doped up on pain meds.

 **Sae:** ok. I think the SIU would be more willing to comply with a records request right now.

 **Sae:** The PIO’s daughter goes to Shujin. He’s been a mess.

 **Keiko:** That feels kind of dirty

 **Sae:** You probably won’t win without playing dirty

Keiko felt dirty thinking of this as something she could win or lose. ‘I have a lot to gain from this but it needs to be about the people they’ve killed.’ 

===

_Afternoon_

The doctor gave Keiko the all clear to head home, told her to come back in a week to have the stitches removed, and gave her some painkillers in case the pain got to be too much. He made sure she knew how lucky she was to survive and asked her to be more careful in the future. The doctor was a fan, which is something Keiko would never get used to.

They wheeled her out of the hospital in a wheelchair because of standard protocol, but told her she’d be able to walk a little bit without much trouble. Being off her feet for days at a time did more damage to her ability to walk than the gunshot did. 

She was focused on her achy legs when Tae helped her out of the car. Makoto took the opportunity to head home and grab things she’d need for an extended stay with Keiko. 

“You know, when I took you on as a patient you were just supposed to be a girl with a condition that made her pass out a lot,” Takemi said.

“And now you get to pretend you’re a doctor in a warzone,” Keiko grinned. “Just be glad they took me to a hospital. If anyone asked, I’d have just had you remove the bullet.”

“Meh. I’d make Rio do it-”

“I don’t mind blood,” Rio said nonchalantly. “I’m sure I’d have been able to figure it out.”

Keiko sighed. “I’m lucky they took me to the hospital.”

Making it to the building’s front door was difficult because Keiko refused to let Takemi hold her up. ‘I can still walk, damn it.’ It was quite painful beyond a few steps, probably because her ginger movements caused her to strain muscles in a way they weren’t used to. Nakano must’ve noticed because he left his station behind the desk to help Keiko.

“Nobody’s going to be impressed that you refused help,” he shook his head and slung her left arm around him. 

Keiko thanked him as he helped her to the elevator. 

“It’s not my first rodeo.” Nakano let her lean against the elevator walls, and looked at Tae and Rio. “You two doing okay?”

“Neither of us have a bullet in us,” Rio snorted. “I guess we’re doing fine.”

Tae rolled her eyes. “It’s nice to leave the house.” She glanced toward Rio as their elevator hit her floor. “Your mom wanted to pick up the apartment before you got back. I guess Felicia made a mess.”

“My poor baby,” Keiko said. “She was probably worried sick.”

Keiko opened the door and nearly fell backward into Tae and Rio as Felicia flew through the air and wrapped her four legs around Keiko’s leg.

“You’re never allowed to go anywhere without me again!” Felicia cried and Keiko couldn’t help but laugh. “I haven’t slept in days and nobody will tell me what’s going on and nobody can understand me-” her frantic mews probably sounded strange to everyone else. “I thought you were-” Felicia paused and sobbed. “I thought you were gonna die and-”

Keiko bent down as much as she could to pat Felicia on the head.

“I’m okay, kitty.” She smiled. “You’ll be happy. I’m gonna be stuck at home for a week or two.”

“Does that mean no school?”

Keiko nodded, and Felicia let go of her leg.

“Cool,” Felicia said. “I’m already planning our revenge. First we-”

“I need to rest for a couple of weeks, Kitty. Give me some time,” Keiko tried to keep her conversation innocuous enough that her friends couldn’t tell they were having a real conversation.

“Fine. But I’ll fill you in once all the _normies_ are gone,” Felicia turned tail and went back to the couch. 

Nakano helped Keiko to the couch and left. Aya left her own room soon after, her hair matted and her clothes dirty from cleaning. The apartment really was spotless right down to Felicia’s litter box.

Keiko didn’t know if her face was red and splotchy because of an allergic reaction or if she’d been crying. When Aya opened her mouth, Keiko realized it might have been both.

“Sorry I didn’t make it to pick you up,” Aya said. “We never really cleaned up after the party the other night and I-”

“Thank you, Mom,” Keiko said. “You really didn’t have to.”

“If I didn’t do it, who would?” Her mother took a seat beside her. “And please don’t say you would.” 

“Hey, I’m not helpless,” Keiko looked down and gave Felicia head pats.

“You’re housing two people who came to you because they had nowhere else to go,” Aya said. Her voice sounded dry. “One of those people pissed you off so bad you wanted to cut them out-”

“I wasn’t cutting you out,” Keiko corrected. “I needed away from you and what’s-his-name and I had the funds to do so. Nothing more. Stop feeling bad about that.”

“You needed away from us…” Aya trailed off. “Am I-” She shook her head. “No. I know I need to be better.”

“You’ve said that so many times, Mom,” Keiko sighed. “Look, I didn’t realize how much was wrong when I left and abandoning you in that situation was completely wrong.”

“Stop it,” Aya spat and looked down at her hands folded in her lap. “I’m an adult.”

“I don’t know that you really are,” Keiko said.

“Had me fooled,” Felicia purred.

Keiko rolled her eyes and shook her head and probably confused her mom because she was staring. “You never talk about what life was like before you had me.”

Aya didn’t look up.

“I don’t think you got to grow up. I think you had a kid, got in over your head, and-”

“Blew up in my dad’s face when he offered to help,” Aya said. She puffed some air out through her nose. “All because I wanted a little independence.”

“I can see how Grandpa gets overbearing-” Keiko thought about how little she actually knew about him. She knew he’d been a detective and that he loved history. He’d taken up archaeology as a hobby after he retired and Aya jokingly called him Indiana Jones all the time. “I don’t know him that well.”

“And that’s a failing on my part,” Aya said. “I thought you’d need a father figure in your life, and god knows your real dad wasn’t ready to step up.”

“Who _is_ my real dad?” Keiko raised an eyebrow.

Felicia buried her face into Keiko’s lap and purred again. “Somebody with a large nose, probably.”

“What?” Keiko didn’t catch herself before replying to the cat.

“You call yourself nosey all the time,” Felicia said, licking at a paw. “I don’t think it’s that big, but hey, if you think you got a big nose, I’ll support you.”

Keiko closed her eyes briefly to process Felicia’s misunderstanding. 

“Are you-” Aya gave Keiko a bewildered look. “You’re talking to your cat.”

“What?” Keiko feigned and looked around the room for a distraction, finding none. “Stop stalling. Who is my real dad?”

“You don’t know him,” Aya said. “Some yakuza. You don’t get into uh, that line of work without having a connection.”

“Something about your real dad being a criminal makes total sense,” Felicia mewed. “I mean, Makoto’s a thief, I’m a cat burglar. Can you really judge?”

Keiko had to hold laughter at the pun, but she did agree. She _couldn’t_ judge. ‘The only friend I have that’s on the up-and-up is Sumire,’ Keiko mused. ‘And the newspaper staff, I guess.’

Aya took the silence as Keiko being too afraid to ask another question. “He doesn’t know about you.”

“Good to know,” Keiko said. “How do you know he’s a deadbeat, then?”

“I didn’t want him around,” Aya said. “Neither did my father, and it killed my relationship with my brother.”

“I can only imagine,” Keiko said.

Aya didn’t find it funny. “On one side, you’ve got the brother with the perfect wife and the adorable little daughter who _loved_ playing detective, just like her grandfather. Then she got older and they started calling her the Detective Prince.”

“That must’ve ate at you,” Keiko said. 

Aya nodded. “My brother had a prince, I had a bastard with the guy that sold me drugs. Shit was stupid, but I fucking hated it. It felt like the universe laughing at me.”

Felicia left Keiko’s lap and crawled across to Aya’s. They seemed to be getting along better, Keiko noticed.

“I didn’t mean to call you a-”

“I get what you’re going for,” Keiko sighed. “It won’t bother me.” ‘Even if it did bother me, I’m not about to send her off on her own. Word that I’m out of the hospital is probably out by now.’ Keiko’s biggest worry was that any of her known associates had targets on their backs.

“I never got to tell Arata how I felt.” Aya kept her hands busy by petting Felicia. “He got to die knowing he was better than me-”

“What exactly did you hate about him?” Keiko tried to contort her body so she could face her mother and was met with searing pain. “Shit.” She shook her head at Aya when she gave an empathetic look. “I’m fine. Answer my question.”

“He was mom’s favorite. He went through all the steps a Shirogane should. Straight A’s, internships, extra-curriculars, all that,” Aya said. “I think she knew from a young age that I wouldn’t be whatever he was. I hated school and I _despised_ Hokkaido. It might be better now, but back then there was no internet and no window to the rest of the world. I was sitting here the other day listening to Anna go on about Game of Thrones with Sumire and that just wouldn’t have happened in the 80’s. Little things like that made Hokkaido feel like a jail.”

“Is that why we don’t visit much?”

Aya nodded. “It still feels oppressive to me, and your Grandpa doesn’t mind visiting us anyway. He loves Tokyo, and he’d bring me with him every time he had business here. When I finally found a way out, coming here seemed like a no-brainer. I even made the right friends, right? And what school didn’t want a Shirogane enrolled?” Her face grew less tense when she thought about those days. “Legend has it that I’d still be wandering around Shibuya Station to this day had Ari not spotted me.”

“Ren still doesn’t know his way around Shibuya,” Keiko rolled her eyes. “If Sumire didn’t meet him before school, he’d be late every day.”

“You city kids don’t know how complicated that bullshit is,” Aya chuckled. “That’s actually how I bonded with Reina. Ari had to escort us to school basically every day for two years.”

Keiko guffawed. “Niijimas and acting like overprotective mothers to strangers, name a better duo.”

“You have no idea how true that is,” Aya said with a smile. “Having them around made getting disowned a lot easier. I honestly wasn’t bothered by it until people started asking me about you.”

“I don’t understand,” Keiko said.

“Um. I really don’t know how to explain this to somebody who doesn’t have a kid.”

“I have a cat,” Keiko shrugged. “Does that count?”

“I belong to nobody!” Felicia raised her head and showed Keiko her teeth. “I’m my own kitty.” Then she lowered her head. 

“It doesn’t count,” Aya rolled her eyes. “It’s just that things were easier when you were small. You’d bring me a piece of paper with a drawing or words on it and I could just go ‘Oh, you’re so smart!’ and you’d be on your merry way. You didn’t like playing with other kids and you’re a reader like your Grandpa, so you were really low maintenance.” She smirked. “My mom didn’t like that. She was worried you’d become a socially awkward recluse, but do you know how many parents can’t get their kids to pick up a book? I was never sure how that made me feel, and then you turned 16 and a few months later people at work were asking about you like I was supposed to care what you were doing. I had to learn what an SJW was, because apparently all the old farts I work with keep calling you that.”

Keiko narrowed her eyes. “How _dare_ I expose my school for covering up sexual assaults-”

“That’s what I said! It’s like I was wrong for being proud of you,” Aya said. “When you left, I really couldn’t blame you. In an effort to be nothing like my own mother, I completely ignored you.”

“I was so frustrated, Mom,” Keiko said. “You just have a bad habit of saying the first thing on your mind-”

“Don’t I know it,” Aya said. “It hit me after Kuni tried to get me kidnapped. Um, specifically after I was coming down. I have a kid, and it’s not like I didn’t choose to have a kid. I know you’re going through some shit, but I think now’s a good time to get stoney bologna?”

Keiko laughed under her hand. “Heh. Stoney bologna-”

“Have you never heard that term before?” Aya shook her head. “It was irresponsible. And then you dropped everything and immediately went after the man when you easily could have turned up your nose, said ‘we’re estranged,’ and left me on my own.”

“Do you really think I would have just abandoned you like that?”

“No, I don’t,” Aya said. “Because you’re reliable in a way I’ve never been. I’ve never given you a good role model and you figured it out anyway. I’m so proud of you.”

Keiko felt a familiar thickness in her throat and tears welling around her eyes. 

“I just wish I’d been more attentive,” Aya said. “I wish I’d given you a real home with a real family. Things might not have gotten so out of hand if you had real support from actual adults-”

“I do have support,” Keiko said. 

“Because other people had to step up,” Aya said, her voice creaking. “Bleh. I’ve said this so many times it probably doesn’t mean anything to you, but I am going to get better.”

“And I’ll tell you what I did last time. The fact that _you’re_ bringing up the conversation means you’ve already gotten better,” Keiko said. “We’ll get through this.”

“Yeah.” Aya frowned. “My dad called earlier.”

“What did Grandpa want?” Keiko raised an eyebrow. Grandpa didn’t call often. 

“Us out of Tokyo.”

“That can’t happen.”

“I told him you wouldn’t go for it,” Aya sighed. “He’s a stubborn old man.”

“So am I,” Keiko said. “I mean. Stubborn- I’m stubborn, damn it. I’m not an old man.”

===

_Saturday, Oct. 8, After School_

Keiko made Makoto go to school that morning. She was starting to get her upper mobility back and Anna and Aya both assured Makoto that Keiko would be okay. Felicia yelled at them for waking her up with their arguing. 

Keiko had a lonely day. Her mother spent most of the day in between angry phone calls from her father, who wouldn’t let up in his demands that she and Keiko move to Hokkaido until the stuff with Shido blows over. He’d done everything short of fly down and kidnap both of them to drag them back there. She was in the middle of thinking about that when her phone rang.

“Hey, Ichi,” Keiko said sleepily. She’d been dozing off in between her thoughts. The pain meds had her a little loopy. “How’s it goin’?”

“How’s it goin’?” Ohya repeated back. “I don’t hear from you except for a singular text for a _month,_ you write the _exact_ stories I told you to avoid, your own mother almost gets kidnapped, you get fucking _shot,_ and you ask me how it’s going?”

“Yes.” Keiko deadpanned.

Ohya sighed. “You could have at least asked for help.”

“You’d have tried to talk me out of it.”

“But you could have asked!” Ohya grunted. “Smart move playing it close to the vest, I guess. How’s the shoulder?”

“Fine,” Keiko said. “It still hurts little when I move it, but I should be good in a couple weeks. Anything going around the rumor mill?”

“Niijima’s trying to bring Shido up on charges,” Ohya whispered. “It looks like she’s got the receipts, too. Okumura’s playing ball.”

“I guess I need to get back to work soon, then,” Keiko yawned. This information wasn’t necessarily new to her. Sae was having trouble getting the SIU to let her do her job, but she’d had no trouble building a case. “Sorry, I took my pain meds and I’m a bit sleepy again.”

“Um. How about you let somebody else cover this one?” Ohya said. “On top of it being extremely personal to you, specifically, this one is dangerous. I already saw you sent a couple kids into a fucking warzone.”

“They went on their own, Ichi,” Keiko said. “I’ve already talked to them.”

“And you’ve convinced them to stay put, right?” Ohya sounded concerned like she wasn’t being a giant hypocrite. Keiko so desperately wanted to ask if she had a similar opinion when she sent Keiko in to try and seduce a complete stranger. “Did they tell you about the yakuza?”

“She did,” Keiko said. “I asked around. He’s an ex-yakuza named Iwai. Him and Ren are good friends.”

“And everything suddenly makes sense,” Ohya sighed. “Where does that kid find these people?”

“I’m more interested that he’s ex-yakuza and he’s not missing any fingers,” Keiko said. “He’s either a made man or he’s got some major dirt. Either way, it’s gotta be a hell of a story.”

“You going after the yakuza next?”

Keiko chuckled. “No way. Kaneshiro was as close to that shitshow as I want to get.”

Makoto walked through the front door while Keiko was saying her goodbyes to Ohya.

“Hey, Mako,” Keiko greeted. Makoto dropped her stuff off in Keiko’s room and came back shortly after with Felicia following her. “How was school?”

Makoto gave an exasperated sigh. “Shiomi had to make a literal announcement to get people to stop asking me how you’re doing, and I’m pretty sure Yuuki is going to have to transfer.”

“Poor guy,” Keiko said. Felicia pounced into her lap carefully. They’d had an incident the prior day where Felicia thought she was playing and nearly made Keiko pass out in pain. 

“I’m proud to report that Keiko didn’t try and work once today,” Felicia held her head pridefully.

“Good kitty,” Makoto said. She read Keiko’s offended expression. “I asked Felicia to let me know if you tried to do anything that looks like work.”

“Betrayal!” Keiko mocked offense and patted Felicia’s head. 

“You need to relax and you know it,” Makoto said. “This is the one place we can guarantee your safety.”

“Makoto! Don’t say that!” Felicia squealed like a rat, digging her paws into Keiko’s thigh. 

“Why not?”

“You’re going to jinx us,” Felicia said, settling back into Keiko’s lap. “And we still have the TV to worry about.”

“Right,” Makoto joined them on the couch, letting Keiko use her for support. “Maybe we should just get rid of the TV.”

“How would we explain that to my mom and Anna?” Keiko leaned over on Makoto, but she had to keep her head straight up or else the pain in her shoulder would be too much. “There’s no way Anna doesn’t already suspect something is up, and my mom isn’t going to be cool living in a place without a TV.”

“We have to keep you safe-”

Felicia and Makoto both made strong protests, but Keiko wasn’t having it. “I don’t want my mom involved, and Anna’s going through enough.”

“You’re allowed to think of yourself first,” Makoto’s hand grazed over Keiko’s thigh in search of her hand. 

“We aren’t getting rid of the TV,” Keiko said. “I paid good money for it, so we’re getting use out of it.” 

“Stubborn old man,” Felicia huffed. 

Keiko rolled her eyes. “While we’re on the topic of safety, I need to have a long talk with Kaori.”

Makoto’s eyes narrowed. “What did she do?”

“Kaori sent me some photos and said they’ll have a story from the protests,” Keiko relayed. “One of Ren’s friends, Iwai, bailed them out.”

Keiko could see the panic in Makoto’s eyes.

“They’re safe,” Keiko said. “Until you get a hold of them, at least.”

“We didn’t leave anyone in charge, did we?”

“Uh, I was kind of on the fritz, dear,” Keiko said. “So that was up to you?”

Makoto blinked. “We never planned for what would happen if something happened to me.”

“I’ll ask in the group chat,” Keiko said. “We need a third-in-command.”

 **Keiko:** Need a volunteer just in case. Makoto and I realized now that we don’t have a third in the chain, just in case something happens to us like it did a few days ago.

 **Keiko:** No, Ren, you are not allowed to be third in line

 **Ren:** I feel attacked.

 **Ren:** I’d just make Futaba do it

 **Ren:** I nominate Yuuki

 **Yuuki:** Ren wtf

 **Ren:** you’re the only person who knows how to actually put a paper together

 **Yuuki:** i tried to kill my boss like three days ago

 **Ren:** living the dream, right? What red-blooded human doesn’t dream of killing their boss sometimes?

 **Hikari:** I feel like this is in really bad taste

 **Hikari:** and I’m normally the first person to laugh at this kind of thing

 **Kaori:** Yeah I really don’t think this is funny at all.

 **Makoto:** It’s really not funny, but Keiko just laughed so hard she hurt her shoulder again and now she’s crying

 **Mizuki:** I nominate Kaori

 **Kaori:** Mizuki what

 **Sumire:** agree w/ Kaori. 

**Hikari:** Kaori probably

 **Kaori:** STOP

 **Shinya:** Definitely Kaori

 **Kaori:** what does this mean?

 **Keiko:** if me n makoto die, everyone answers to you

 **Kaori:** that would be a lot less worrying if you didn’t almost actually die

 **Yuuki:** Keiko are you writing anything for Monday? I’ve got space to fill

 **Keiko:** Why don’t you write something?

 **Yuuki:** uh. I’m not a writer.

 **Keiko:** You are, however, the person that proved that the psychotic breakdowns exist and that it’s possible to survive one

 **Keiko:** Face it, Yuuki, you just became the world’s foremost expert.

 **Makoto:** If you don’t want to, you don’t have to. Some people don’t handle their trauma by telling everyone they meet about it like they’re in group therapy.

 **Ren:** wow that’s really just a shot at like every single one of your friends

 **Yuuki:** I’ll send you a copy tomorrow morning. 

===

_Evening_

Keiko startled awake at a knock at the door and little paws scampering around the living room. She was still groggy due in part to exhaustion and in part to the pain medication. She could hear Makoto talking to somebody but she couldn’t turn around to see who.

“You should have texted first,” Makoto sounded annoyed.

“I did.” Keiko recognized Haru’s voice. “Several times, both you and Keiko.”

Makoto must’ve checked her phone because she relented. “You did. Sorry.”

“I figured you were either sleeping or busy but this can’t really wait,” Haru said.

“It really couldn’t,” another voice pitched in. “How the hell does a high school kid afford an apartment like this?”

“I don’t charge very much-”

“Wait, this is your building?”

Keiko couldn’t much move on her own so she shouted from the couch. “Hi Haru!” She cringed at how dopey her own voice sounded. “Fucking pain meds,” she hissed. ‘What good are they even for? My shoulder still hurts like a bitch.’

“Keiko-chan, how are you feeling?” Haru came into view, taking one of the seats closer to the TV. Principal Shiomi took a seat on the opposite side, one of the kitchen chairs left by a brief visit from Dr. Takemi earlier that day. 

“Whoa,” Keiko’s eyes widened. “You both have red hair.”

Haru chuckled. “We do, in fact, have red hair.”

“Why do I know so many people with red hair?” Keiko frowned. “I’m stuck with brown.”

“You could always dye-”

“Been there, done that,” Keiko’s chortle quickly turned into a giggling fit, which turned into sobs when her shoulder smarted again. “Ouch.” She looked to Haru, who met her eyes with concern. “I deserve that.”

Makoto joined them after hearing Keiko’s painful cry. “It’s sort of a blessing that it hurts you to laugh at your own jokes.”

“Like a shock collar for a dog,” Shiomi chuckled. “Should’ve gotten one of those for Shinji.”

Makoto sighed. “So, what did you guys need? I don’t mean to be rude, but we really aren’t up to visitors right now-” the implication being Haru was welcome at any time but bringing the principal over while Keiko was high on painkillers wasn’t. 

“I understand, but it’s fairly urgent,” Shiomi said. “Makoto told me about the TV.”

“Oh! You mean the tentacle monster guys-”

“Keiko!” Makoto winced. “The TV world, not the-”

“Those guys are so scary, man,” Keiko put on a spooky voice. “I thought they were gonna sneak a tentacle up my-”

“Alright, Keiko,” Makoto said. “That’s enough. What about the TV?”

Haru cleared her throat. “There’s a rumor going around the school that if you watch TV at midnight, your soulmate will appear.”

“Oh! I’ve seen this movie before!” Keiko grinned. “Cinderella beat up Makoto and I-”

“That wasn’t a movie,” Makoto let out a deep sigh. “Sumire almost died that night.”

“You’re the only people that know about it,” Shiomi said. “I tried to talk to Sumire but she said she had gymnastics practice and couldn’t stick around.”

Makoto shook her head. “I know Sumire hasn’t been in the TV again. Has anyone been missing school?” 

“No,” Shiomi said. “Yuuki and Makoto were both back at school today, and Fujioka is still enrolled despite Ushimaru’s best efforts.”

“If Ushimaru hates them, they’re probably good students,” Keiko sighed.

“He yelled at her for shaving her head,” Shiomi sighed. 

“She rocks it, though,” Keiko said. “What’s the problem?”

“He thinks it violates the school dress code,” Shiomi said. “It doesn’t, mind you. I checked.”

“Bet he doesn’t care about Ryuji’s hair,” Makoto huffed. “Did she explain _why_ she did it?”

“That just made him even angrier,” Shiomi rolled her eyes and pulled out her phone. “He’s been telling his classes that it’s Keiko’s job to, and I quote, ‘disavow the mass protests that sprang up after she provoked a powerful man.’”

Keiko perked up. “Can we throw Ushimaru into the TV-”

“Keiko!” Makoto started to lecture but Haru interrupted.

“I thought about it,” Haru said. “We don’t have a TV big enough at the school but if we could lure him to my house, he _might_ fit inside my home theater-”

Makoto gasped. “Haru, you aren’t helping!”

Shiomi folded her arms. “That does bring me to an interesting coincidence. What do you know about the Foggy Day Murders?”

Keiko’s phone buzzed and buzzed and buzzed. 

**Alibaba:** FUTABA’S TIME TO SHINE

**Alibaba has attached a large file…**

Keiko opened the file to find a video of Naoto Shirogane in a role Keiko often found herself in: On television discussing a case. Her answers were far more vague than Keiko had ever been on TV but she was, in fact, discussing the Foggy Day Murders.

Shiomi nodded. “Shirogane was part of a group of Persona users who traveled inside the TV to fight shadows and chase after a serial killer in their small town of Inaba.”

“Hey, Ren’s from there!” Keiko said. “Maybe the fog followed him.”

Keiko’s eyes shifted as everyone in the room stared at her, dumbfounded.

“What? I mean, Felicia lived inside the TV for awhile,” Keiko shrugged. “We could just ask her-”

“I don’t know anything,” Felicia yawned. “What are we talking about?”

“The TV world,” Makoto said. 

“Are you talking to the cat?” Shiomi gave Makoto an odd look.

“Yup,” Keiko said. “The TV world spits you out in Odaiba. Oh!” Keiko jolted forward and then sobbed. “Ouch.” Makoto’s eyes rolled as Keiko sniffled. “I should call Tana. They haven’t seen Felicia in too long.”

“You’re not allowed to leave the house!” Felicia pounced over and got in Keiko’s face. “Bad human. Bad!”

The scene of Felicia wagging her paw in Keiko’s face like a finger was too much for Haru, who wasn’t sure she’d ever not laugh again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So much fun in this chapter. Some of Keiko's humor is a bit darker than normal but I didn't think it got dark enough to warrant a trigger warning.
> 
> Let me know what you think!


End file.
